THE  LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER 

OF  THE 

RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

REMINISCENCES  AND  LETTERS 
OF  CATHERINE  BRESHKOVSKY 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


The 

Little  Grandmother 

of  the 

Russian  Revolution 


REMINISCENCES  AND  LETTERS  OF 
CATHERINE   BRESHKOVSKY 


BOSTON 

LITTLE,  BROWN,   AND   COMPANY 
1917 


Copyright,  1917, 
BT  LITTLE,  BROWN,  AND  COMPANY. 


All  rights  reserved 
Published,  November,  1917 


NortoooU 
Set  up  and  elect  retyped  by  J.  S.  Gushing  Co.,  Norwood,  Mast.,  U.S.A. 


College 
Library 


PREFACE 

THE  material  in  this  book  is  drawn  mainly  from  three 
sources.  Madame  Breshkovsky,  while  in  New  York, 
gave  Doctor  Abraham  Cahan  an  account  of  her  child- 
hood and  youth.  He  wrote  out  her  reminiscences,  and 
published  them  in  his  paper,  the  Jewish  Daily  Forward, 
in  instalments,  running  from  October  23,  1904,  to 
January  18,  1905. 

This  account,  translated  from  the  Yiddish,  and 
somewhat  condensed,  is  here  printed  in  English  for 
the  first  time.  It  brings  the  narrative  down  to  her 
first  arrest.  Through  an  interpreter,  she  gave  a 
description  of  her  early  prison  experiences  and  an 
outline  of  her  later  life  to  Ernest  Poole,  who  published 
it  in  the  Outlook.  To  the  Outlook  I  am  indebted  also 
for  her  letters  written  in  prison  to  her  son.  Her  ex- 
periences after  she  was  sent  to  Siberia  for  the  second 
time  are  told  in  her  own  correspondence. 

Her  full  name,  in  Russian,  is  Ekaterina  Constan- 
tinovna  Breshko-Breshkovskaya.  I  have  used  the 
shortened  form  of  it  which  she  herself  used  in  this 
country. 

ALICE  STONE  BLACKWELL. 

3  MONADNOCK  STREET, 
DORCHESTER,  MASS. 


2037367 


THE  LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF 
THE  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

CHAPTER  I 

THE  Russian  revolution  is  one  of  the  great  events 
of  modern  history.  While  it  seemed  to  come  with 
surprising  suddenness,  it  was  really  the  fruit  of  the 
labors  and  sacrifices  of  thousands  of  Russia's  noblest 
men  and  women.  Preeminent  among  these  stands 
out  the  figure  of  Catherine  Breshkovsky,  known  to 
millions  by  the  affectionate  name  of  Baboushka,  the 
"Dear  Little  Grandmother"  of  the  revolution. 

She  was  born  in  1844,  on  an  estate  in  the  district 
of  Vitebsk,  in  Little  Russia.  She  was  fortunate  in 
her  parents.  Whenever  she  speaks  of  them,  her  face 
lights  up.  "I  had  wonderful  parents,"  she  says. 
"If  there  is  anything  good  in  me,  I  owe  it  all  to  them." 

Her  father,  Constantine  Mikhailovitch  Verigo,  was 
the  son  of  a  Polish  aristocrat.  Her  mother,  Olga 
Ivanovna  Goremykina,  came  of  a  noble  family  of 
Great  Russia.  Catherine  is  therefore  three  fourths 
Russian  and  one  fourth  Polish. 

Constantine  Verigo  was  a  handsome,  elegant  man, 
of  majestic  presence,  with  a  large  head,  a  high  fore- 
head, and  blue  eyes  twinkling  with  good  nature. 


2      LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

Even  when  his  brow  grew  cloudy  and  his  manner 
stern,  the  children  were  never  afraid  of  him. 

Neither  her  father  nor  her  mother  ever  made  an 
enemy.  Her  father  was  frank  and  open-hearted,  with 
a  hot  temper  that  revolted  against  injustice.  He 
often  told  the  other  landowners  just  what  he  thought 
of  their  pretences  and  their  brutal  treatment  of  their 
subordinates ;  but  these  outbursts  were  never  laid 
up  against  him.  He  was  universally  respected  and 
liked.  His  chief  pleasure  was  to  sit  alone  and  read 
the  works  of  liberal  writers. 

Her  mother  was  not  so  handsome  as  her  father, 
but  had  an  intelligent  and  amiable  face,  exquisite 
manners,  and  irreproachable  tact.  She  had  attended 
school  at  the  well-known  Smolin  Convent  in  Petro- 
grad,  and  was  a  woman  of  culture.  She  was  sincerely 
religious.  She  cared  little  for  the  pomps  and  cere- 
monies of  the  Greek  Church,  but  brought  her  children 
up  on  the  gospels,  and  on  beautiful  stories  of  holy 
men  and  women. 

The  mother  was  very  careful  in  her  behavior  towards 
others,  regardful  of  appearances  and  of  "good  form." 
If  a  truth  were  painful,  she  delicately  concealed  it. 
Over  and  over  again  she  said  to  her  children,  "The 
best  thing  in  life  is  the  golden  mean."  She  con- 
stantly admonished  them  that  nothing  was  so  harm- 
ful as  excess.  If  a  child  failed  to  read  her  Bible,  the 
mother  would  reprove  her;  and  if  the  child  then 
read  the  Bible  too  assiduously,  the  mother  would 
reprove  her  again,  and  repeat  that  excess  of  any  kind 
was  fraught  with  danger.  This  was  drummed  into 
the  children's  ears  so  often  that  they  dreaded  to  hear 
it.  Nevertheless  this  polished  lady  was  genuinely 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION       3 

tender  and  warm-hearted.  She  was  always  well 
dressed,  and  took  care  that  her  children  too  should 
be  neatly  clad.  On  week  days  and  Sundays  alike, 
everybody  wore  clean  clothes;  no  one  needed  to 
make  any  change  when  company  was  expected. 

The  home  life  of  the  family  was  rarely  ruffled  by 
unruly  tempers  or  hasty  words.  The  children  were 
never  whipped.  If  they  misbehaved,  their  mother 
lectured  them  for  hours,  gently  inculcating  "the 
golden  mean."  Not  a  word  of  profanity  was  ever 
heard.  Catherine's  elder  sister  Natalie,  when  about 
eighteen,  was  a  guest  for  a  short  time  in  a  musician's 
family.  On  her  return  home  she  reported  with  much 
excitement  that  he  had  used  in  his  talk  such  shocking 
vulgarisms  as  "Bah!"  and  "Piff!" 

When  Catherine  was  four  years  old,  her  father  bought 
a  large  estate  in  the  district  of  Tchernigov.  There  her 
childhood  was  passed. 

She  had  a  quick  temper  as  a  child.  At  three  years 
old,  she  once  got  so  angry  that  she  struck  her  mother 
in  the  eye  with  a  stick.  In  the  end  her  mother's 
training  enabled  her  to  conquer  this  fault. 

In  her  childhood  she  was  always  distressed  about 
her  innumerable  "sins."  "I  would  sin  and  straight- 
way repent  it,"  she  said.  "My  heart  was  continually 
rent  with  grief  over  my  misdeeds."  What  were  the 
four-year-old  girl's  offenses  ?  She  would  speak  Russian 
when  ordered  to  speak  French,  or  she  would  sulk 
and  pout  when  told  to  be  "nice"  to  her  brother  and 
sister,  or  perhaps,  later,  she  might  refuse  to  learn  her 
grammar  lesson,  which  she  hated.  Her  mother  would 
sermonize  her  till  Katya's  little  heart  "softened 
like  butter",  and  the  tears  streamed  down  her  cheeks. 


4      LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

She  would  go  to  bed  full  of  good  resolutions,  but  when 
the  next  day  came,  again  she  would  speak  Russian 
when  bidden  to  speak  French. 

When  the  children  went  out  to  walk,  Katya  used 
to  keep  apart  from  the  others.  She  loved  solitude. 
She  had  a  passion  for  scrutinizing  things  and  meditat- 
ing over  them,  as  her  father  did.  This  was  one  of 
her  chief  "sins."  Governesses  found  the  child  quite 
unmanageable  in  this  particular.  She  would  per- 
sistently disappear  from  the  rest  of  the  group,  and 
have  to  be  hunted  for  with  excitement  and  anxiety, 
until  she  was  finally  discovered  and  driven  back  to 
the  fold.  One  German  governess  was  so  vexed  by 
her  habit  of  suddenly  vanishing  that  she  exclaimed, 
" Katya  is  a  spider!" 

Her  mother  could  not  understand  this  eccentric 
child.  What  added  to  her  concern  was  that  the  little 
girl's  neck  was  slightly  crooked.  "Malheureuse  en- 
fant!" she  would  sigh,  with  a  mournful  shake  of  the 
head.  And  Katya,  hearing  it,  would  wonder,  "What 
are  they  bothering  about?"  Her  crooked  neck  never 
troubled  her.  She  was  wholly  indifferent  as  to  her 
looks. 

She  used  to  run  off  to  the  meadows  and  watch  the 
cows  grazing,  and  then  go  to  the  huts  of  the  serfs, 
and  mingle  with  the  peasant  children  and  their  mothers, 
studying  their  life,  and  entering  into  every  peasant 
woman's  troubles. 

From  earliest  childhood  she  was  vividly  impressed 
by  the  sharp  contrast  between  the  condition  of  her 
father's  hundreds  of  serfs  and  that  of  her  own  family. 
Sometimes  she  would  seize  a  little  peasant  boy  by 
the  hand  and  hurry  him  into  her  beautiful  home, 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION      5 

leading  him  through  the  exquisitely  furnished  rooms 
till  she  found  her  mother  sitting  in  the  parlor,  reading 
or  knitting.  Then  she  would  beg  her  mother  to  look 
at  the  poor  little  fellow,  whose  legs  were  so  skinny, 
his  stomach  so  big,  his  face  so  dirty  and  hollow,  and 
his  clothing  nothing  but  rags.  To  her  mother  this 
seemed  natural.  The  unnatural  thing  was  for  a  rich 
little  girl  to  drag  a  dirty  peasant  child  into  her  mother's 
parlor. 

Her  mother  had  taught  her  to  be  kind  and  courteous 
to  the  servants,  and  she  loved  to  pass  her  time  with 
them;  but  whenever  her  mother  found  her  among 
them,  she  drew  her  away,  saying,  "Katya,  this  is 
no  place  for  you." 

She  wrote  in  after  years:  "We  lived  in  a  large 
house,  richly  decorated  and  handsomely  furnished, 
surrounded  by  beautiful  parks  and  gardens.  It  was 
always  open  to  receive  visits  from  other  families  of 
the  nobility  who  were  scattered  about  the  district 
where  we  lived,  and  to  guests  from  other  parts  of  the 
empire,  especially  during  the  great  f£tes  which  were 
given  several  times  a  year.  Their  carriages  filled  the 
court-yard,  their  servants  of  every  degree  crowded 
the  corridors  and  anterooms,  and  ladies  in  elegant 
toilets  and  men  in  full  dress  surrounded  the  enormous 
tables,  which  groaned  beneath  the  weight  of  the  festal 
meats,  prepared  by  cooks  who  had  served  their  ap- 
prenticeship in  St.  Petersburg,  Warsaw,  and  even 
Paris.  The  Russian  nobility  loved  luxury,  and  they 
knew  how  to  secure  admirable  service.  Orchestras, 
troops  of  actors  and  singers  were  found  in  the  homes 
of  the  Russian  gentry.  Yet  all  these  actors  and 
musicians,  as  well  as  the  cooks,  valets  and  nurses, 


6       LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

were  Russian  peasants,  transformed  by  the  will  of 
their  masters  that  they  might  make  a  brave  show,  a 
little  court,  in  imitation  of  that  of  the  Czar. 

"But  the  life  of  the  manor-house  was  not  the  only 
one  to  attract  the  attention  of  a  child  with  vivid 
imagination,  warm  heart  and  active  mind.  Scattered 
about  my  father's  estate,  as  about  every  other  landed 
proprietor's  dwelling,  were  so-called  villages,  long 
streets  of  miserable  huts  where  lived  great  robust 
creatures  clad  in  coarse  garments,  uncombed,  almost 
unwashed,  who,  if  they  saw  their  master  or  any  of 
his  family  coming,  would  hastily  pull  off  their  head 
covering  and  bow  almost  to  the  ground.  These  were 
the  peasants  who  tilled  the  soil.  Rising  before  the 
sun,  they  could  not  go  to  bed  till  late  at  night,  for 
they  had  to  pass  all  their  time  at  work  in  the  fields, 
the  meadows,  the  woods,  the  granaries,  the  stables, 
the  parks,  the  pastures.  They  worked  everywhere 
and  always.  They  were  scolded,  they  were  whipped, 
they  were  exiled  to  Siberia,  at  the  whim  of  their  master, 
for  the  least  fault.  Their  wives  and  daughters  were 
taken  to  serve  the  master  or  his  sons  as  mistresses; 
their  children  were  carried  off  without  their  consent 
to  be  trained  as  servants  or  to  serve  in  the  house. 
The  men  would  come  to  the  master  begging  bread 
for  which  their  families  were  famishing;  the  women 
would  come  weeping,  demanding  their  children  of 
whom  they  had  been  robbed.  How  many  times, 
stupefied  and  shocked,  I  have  been  the  witness  of 
such  humiliating,  degrading,  excruciating  things ! 
How  many  times  I  have  thrown  myself  at  my  father's 
feet  to  implore  pardon  for  a  so-called  culprit,  whose 
only  fault,  perhaps,  was  to  have  fallen  asleep  while 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION       7 

herding  the  sheep !  How  many  times  I  have  been 
indignant  to  see  how  hundreds  of  peasants  would  be 
kept  waiting  in  the  court-yard,  bare-headed  and 
shivering  with  cold,  waiting  for  the  master  to  appear, 
who,  after  making  them  wait  all  day,  would  send 
them  off  without  a  word,  so  taken  up  was  he  with 
gambling  at  cards  with  other  lords,  who  in  their  turn 
were  making  their  coachmen  wait  on  the  carriage 
box  till  their  hands  were  frozen ! 

"These  things  tormented  my  childish  mind,  and 
pursued  me  even  into  my  bed,  where  I  would  lie  awake 
for  hours,  unable  to  sleep  for  thinking  of  all  the  horrors 
about  me. 

"I  had  wide  opportunity  to  observe  the  life  of  the 
peasantry,  for  they  came  in  groups  to  discuss  every 
event  relating  to  their  communal  life  with  my  father, 
and  during  such  hours  I  was  always  at  his  side,  that 
I  might  hear  what  the  peasants  had  to  say.  There 
were  questions  about  the  fields,  the  pastures,  the 
woods,  the  building  of  cabins,  the  taxes  they  must 
pay,  the  roads  to  be  built,  the  marshes  to  be  drained. 
Then  there  were  questions  about  recruiting;  for  in 
those  days  it  was  only  the  peasants  who  gave  their 
sons  to  the  Russian  army.  Child  as  I  was,  I  could 
not  understand  why  these  honest  folk  should  bear  the 
entire  burden  of  work  and  of  taxes.  I  saw  that  my 
father,  good  though  he  was,  put  much  more  heart 
into  looking  after  his  own  interests  than  the  interests 
of  his  serfs,  and  I  was  shocked  at  the  inequality  be- 
tween the  rich  and  the  poor. 

"Often  I  escaped  from  home  and  went  alone  to  the 
neighboring  villages  to  visit  the  huts  of  our  peasants; 
and  there  I  would  see  old  men  lying  on  the  straw, 


8      LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

friendless  and  famished,  while  all  through  the  long 
summer  days  the  entire  population  strong  enough  to 
work  was  in  the  fields,  where  they  would  have  to  toil 
till  the  night  fell.  The  little  children,  dirty,  emaci- 
ated, would  be  quarreling  in  the  mud  or  dust,  eating 
from  the  same  dish  with  the  dogs,  and  even  the  pigs. 
Every  Sunday  I  would  see  the  peasants  going  into 
our  church,  praying  with  fervor,  pouring  out  their 
tears,  and  giving  then*  last  kopek  in  the  name  of  God 
that  there  might  be  a  better  life  in  the  next  world, 
since  that  was  their  only  hope  of  happiness. 

"  From  the  age  of  eight,  how  to  find  justice  was  the 
question  that  troubled  me." 

Yet  the  Verigos  treated  their  serfs  with  much  more 
consideration  than  most  Russian  landowners.  Her 
father  never  had  a  serf  flogged.  Their  serfs  appreciated 
the  difference,  and  constantly  boasted  of  it.  "We 
belong  to  the  Verigos ! "  they  would  say  with  pride. 
When  Katya,  in  conversation  with  the  neighbors, 
referred  to  the  contrast  between  the  condition  of  her 
father's  serfs  and  theirs,  she  would  be  cut  short  with 
the  retort,  "Well,  your  estate  is  a  republic!"  Yet 
even  among  the  Verigos  there  was  not  a  really  warm 
and  friendly  feeling  toward  the  peasants,  except  on 
Katya's  part. 

The  selfish  desire  to  grab  everything,  which  often 
shows  itself  in  children  at  one  stage  of  their  develop- 
ment, was  unknown  to  Katya.  Her  tendency  was  to 
give  away  everything  that  came  into  her  hands.  If 
she  were  given  some  crisp  delicacy,  fresh  from  the 
oven,  she  would  immediately  present  it  to  one  of  the 
servants.  If  she  got  a  new  toy,  she  passed  it  on  to 
some  peasant  child  before  the  day  was  out.  Often 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION       9 

she  came  home  without  her  cloak  or  without  her  dress, 
having  given  it  away  to  some  shivering,  half-clad 
creature.  Rebuked  by  her  mother,  she  answered, 
"Mamma,  you  read  to  us  from  tne  gospel  that  if 
any  one  has  two  garments  he  should  give  one  to  the 
poor.  Why  are  you  angry  if  I  do  just  what  you  read 
to  us?" 

Katya  cared  little  for  dolls  or  playthings,  but  was 
very  fond  of  living  creatures.  She  longed  for  a  kitten 
or  a  calf.  At  five  years  old  she  begged  her  mother 
to  give  her  the  entire  charge  of  a  young  calf.  At 
first  her  mother  would  not  hear  of  it.  Finally  she 
yielded  in  part.  The  children  were  taken  to  the 
barnyard  and  told  that  each  might  choose  a  calf. 
They  were  then  brought  into  the  house  and  instructed 
to  work  the  names  of  their  pets  upon  cloth  collars, 
and  afterwards  they  were  allowed  to  adorn  the  calves 
with  the  collars.  Their  mother  thought  this  was 
quite  enough,  and  forbade  the  children  to  go  near 
the  calves  any  more. 

Katya  was  not  satisfied.  She  yearned  to  have  a 
little  calf  of  her  own,  that  she  could  take  care  of  and 
make  a  companion.  One  day  as  she  wandered  through 
the  fields,  she  came  upon  a  thick  branch  broken  from 
a  tree,  with  twigs  growing  in  such  a  way  as  to  give 
it  a  rough  resemblance  to  an  animal.  Her  heart  beat 
with  joy.  Here  at  last  was  her  calf!  She  propped 
it  up  against  the  tree,  and  hurried  to  the  house  for 
provisions.  She  set  food  before  it  in  one  dish  and 
milk  in  another.  Three  times  a  day  she  fed  it,  visit- 
ing it  secretly,  and  weaving  around  it  all  sorts  of 
fancies. 

But  one  day  when  she  was  with  her  governess  and 


10    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

the  other  children,  she  was  seized  with  an  irresistible 
wish  to  visit  her  calf.  Half  unconsciously,  she  led 
them  towards  it.  As  soon  as  they  caught  sight  of  it, 
they  all  exclaimed,  "Ah,  Katya's  calf!  It  is  Katya's 
calf ! "  Katya  felt  abashed.  Her  illusion  was  shat- 
tered, and  her  wooden  calf  gave  her  no  further  pleasure. 

She  was  always  dreaming  of  helping  some  one. 
After  the  loss  of  her  calf,  this  dream  absorbed  her 
whole  being. 

She  was  more  interested  in  people  than  in  anything 
else.  When  the  family  made  journeys  in  their  coach, 
she  often  caught  sight  of  Jews,  and  she  was  moved  to 
great  curiosity  by  their  singularities.  She  looked  with 
awe  upon  these  people  who  spoke  a  strange  language, 
wore  outlandish  clothes,  and  ate  food  prepared  accord- 
ing to  peculiar  rules. 

Once  she  saw  a  group  of  men  with  shaven  heads 
and  bare  feet,  laden  with  heavy  chains,  driven  along 
the  street,  under  guard.  She  was  much  impressed 
by  the  sorrowful  sight,  and  asked  her  mother  who 
they  were. 

"  They  are  unfortunate  people  —  lost  people,  who 
have  taken  the  wrong  path  in  life,"  her  mother  an- 
swered. But  the  response  did  not  dispel  the  mystery. 
She  was  constantly  asking  questions  to  which  she  got 
no  answer. 

Her  chief  concern,  however,  was  for  the  great  class 
of  peasants.  Her  dream  was  to  help  them  and 
make  them  happy.  She  imagined  herself  the  mistress 
of  a  vast  estate,  where  all  the  unfortunate  serfs  in 
the  world  might  live,  wearing  beautiful  clothes,  hav- 
ing plenty  to  eat,  and  passing  their  days  free  from 
care. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    11 

On  quiet  summer  afternoons  she  would  lie  down 
with  the  tall  grass  all  around  her,  and  look  up  into 
the  sky,  with  its  flocks  of  fleecy  clouds.  In  the  dis- 
tance there  was  a  hill  over  which  a  coach  occasionally 
passed.  Every  cloud  that  drifted  by  seemed  to  bear 
the  form  of  some  definite  object  —  a  tree,  a  giant,  a 
city,  hills  and  valleys  —  whatever  she  had  heard  or 
read  about.  Against  these  clouds  as  a  background 
she  built  her  castles  in  the  air. 

She  had  heard  of  America,  and  how  Columbus  and 
his  companions  went  there  in  search  of  gold,  and 
found  treasure  in  abundance;  and  she  planned  to  go 
to  California,  and  there  heap  up  fortunes  to  bring 
back  with  her  for  the  serfs.  She  would  buy  vast 
tracts  of  land  —  there  they  were,  in  the  clouds,  mostly 
islands  —  and  there  the  peasants  should  live  and 
cultivate  the  fertile  soil.  As  she  gazed  into  the  many- 
colored  clouds,  she  saw  the  very  world  that  she  hoped 
to  create. 

Katya  talked  freely  of  her  plans  about  California, 
and  when  her  family  made  fun  of  them,  she  answered 
naively,  "But  many  people  have  brought  gold  from 
that  land!" 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  estate  of  the  Verigos  was  an  oasis  in  the  desert. 
Among  the  families  that  they  visited,  Katya  saw  very 
different  scenes. 

A  neighbor  and  relative  of  the  Verigos  was  Madame 
Shiria,  a  widow  with  an  idiot  son.  She  had  the  dis- 
posal of  his  immense  fortune,  and  squandered  it  reck- 
lessly. Other  relatives  tried  to  have  a  guardian 
appointed  for  him.  It  was  the  government's  custom 
to  let  all  matters  be  decided  by  the  nobility  rather  than 
by  experts.  Instead  of  having  a  commission  of  doctors 
determine  whether  the  young  man  was  mentally  defi- 
cient, the  authorities  decreed  that  the  question  should 
be  settled  by  his  acquaintances.  Then  on  every  side 
there  were  disputes,  one  person  crying,  "Fedia  is  an 
idiot !"  and  another  protesting,  "Fedia  is  not  an  idiot !" 
The  line  of  cleavage  was  between  those  who  expected 
to  inherit  something  from  Fedia's  estate  and  those  who 
hoped  to  get  a  handsome  present  from  Fedia's  mother. 
Madame  Shiria  hired  a  young  man  to  personate  her 
son,  and  placed  him  in  a  notary's  office  as  proof  that 
he  was  quite  able  to  manage  his  own  affairs.  Mean- 
while she  continued  to  squander  his  property.  She 
lived  like  a  queen.  During  a  single  winter  in  Berlin 
she  -spent  two  hundred  thousand  rubles.  She  was  a 
woman  of  rare  beauty,  and  captivated  the  heart  of  the 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    13 

German  Emperor;  but  she  filled  honest  little  Katya 
with  disgust. 

Once  during  a  grand  ball  at  Madame  Shiria's,  Katya 
ran  from  room  to  room,  looking  and  listening,  as  was 
her  custom.  The  band  was  playing,  couples  were 
dancing,  and  laughter  and  merrymaking  reigned 
supreme.  At  last  Katya  reached  the  outer  room.  In 
the  shadow  of  the  doorway  stood  a  sorrowful  figure  with 
bowed  head.  It  was  a  serf  waiting  to  see  Madame 
Shiria.  He  had  been  waiting  there  all  day  in  the  same 
attitude.  He  was  in  tatters,  and  through  the  rents  in 
his  rags  his  limbs  looked  like  those  of  a  skeleton.  At 
last  Madame  Shiria's  silken  train  was  heard  sweeping 
along  the  polished  floor,  and  she  appeared.  The 
starving  peasant  trembled,  and  a  faint  light  of  hope 
flickered  in  his  eyes.  She  asked  in  a  chilling  tone, 
"What  do  you  want  here?"  He  threw  himself  at  her 
feet,  and  broke  into  a  storm  of  sobs. 

"My  lady,  God  bless  you !  Have  pity  on  me.  My 
cow  is  dead.  Help  me,  I  beg  of  you  !" 

Madame  Shiria  stepped  back  with  disdain.  "How 
do  these  things  concern  me?  Go  to  my  steward. 
Go." 

The  serf  had  already  been  to  the  steward,  who  had 
sent  him  to  the  lady.  Katya  and  her  sisters  pleaded 
for  the  unfortunate  man,  but  he  was  put  out  of  the 
house,  and  Madame  Shiria  went  back  to  her  ballroom. 
Katya's  heart  felt  as  if  it  were  weighed  down  by  a 
heavy  stone. 

Another  neighbor  was  fat  Duke  Baratov,  whose 
"god  was  his  belly."  Poor  himself,  he  had  married  a 
rich  countess,  and  built  a  luxurious  palace  with  his 
wife's  money.  He  kept  an  orchestra,  and  gave  magnifi- 


14    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

cent  banquets  and  balls.  On  every  holiday  a  fortune 
was  spent  on  the  champagne  alone.  And  all  this 
fountain  of  squandered  wealth  flowed  from  a  source 
buried  in  muddy  huts  and  squalid  poverty  —  from  the 
meek  and  oppressed  peasants.  Their  last  penny, 
their  last  bit  of  cloth,  cheese,  butter,  and  bread  went 
into  his  storehouse,  while  they  were  starving.  He 
plundered  not  only  the  peasants  but  the  merchants. 
If  a  merchant  came  to  buy  wheat,  the  Duke  would 
exact  a  large  deposit  in  advance,  promising  prompt 
delivery  of  the  wheat  in  return.  Then  he  would  sell 
the  same  wheat  over  and  over  again  to  half  a  dozen 
other  merchants,  taking  a  deposit  from  each,  and,  of 
course,  failing  to  deliver  the  grain.  The  merchants  had 
no  redress  against  a  nobleman.  The  Duke  was  a  fre- 
quent visitor  at  Madame  Shiria's,  where  a  circle  of  the 
more  worthless  nobility  used  to  gather.  Katya  knew 
this  group.  She  often  heard  their  behavior  discussed 
and  condemned  in  her  own  home. 

Another  nobleman  was  a  kleptomaniac,  to  put  it 
delicately.  Wherever  he  went,  his  friends  had  to 
keep  an  eye  on  their  silver  spoons  and  candlesticks. 

There  were  a  few  nobles  of  a  better  type.  Constan- 
tine  Verigo  liked  Nicholas  Kovalik — the  father  of  that 
Kovalik  who  afterwards  became  a  leader  in  the  rev- 
olutionary movement  of  the  seventies.  Young  Kova- 
lik's  mother  and  Katya's  mother  had  been  schoolmates. 
The  friendship  between  the  two  families  was  so  close 
that,  although  their  estates  lay  far  apart,  visits  were 
frequent;  and  the  simplicity  and  sincerity  of  the 
Kovaliks  made  a  lasting  impression  on  Katya. 

When  the  nobles  of  the  better  sort  got  together,  she 
noticed  that  they  often  discussed  certain  matters  in 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    15 

subdued  tones  and  behind  closed  doors.  Sometimes 
one  would  read  aloud  an  article  not  wholly  favorable 
to  the  Czar,  or  recite  a  poem  by  Pushkin  or  Chamikon. 
Those  were  the  days  of  the  terrible  Czar  Nicholas. 
Nobody  dared  to  say  a  word  against  him  in  public,  but 
the  nobles  condemned  him  in  secret.  Then  came  the 
Crimean  War,  and  the  great  siege  of  Sebastopol ;  and 
those  same  nobles  freely  offered  the  Czar  regiments  of 
serfs  gathered  from  their  estates.  Thousands  of 
peasants  wearing  red  girdles  and  red  hatbands  were 
torn  from  their  families,  armed  with  guns  and  axes, 
and  sent  forth  to  do  or  die,  in  the  name  of  God  and  the 
Czar.  These  contradictions  between  men's  thoughts 
and  their  actions  grated  on  the  young  girl's  feelings, 
and  made  her  wonder. 

Another  acquaintance  of  the  Verigos  was  a  Duchess 
Galitzin,  living  on  a  grand  estate  near  Lugovetz  in 
the  Starodubov  district,  in  a  palace  that  an  emperor 
might  have  envied.  She  was  a  member  of  the  highest 
aristocracy,  as  intimate  with  the  Czar's  family  as  with 
her  own.  When  Katya  was  still  very  young,  the 
Duchess  invited  Constantine  Verigo  to  take  charge 
of  her  vast  estate  as  her  steward,  and  Verigo,  having 
but  little  to  do,  consented. 

He  rode  to  Lugovetz,  taking  his  family  with  him. 
Katya  now  had  a  chance  to  see  what  was  considered  the 
highest  society ;  and  when  they  afterwards  went  to 
Petrograd,  she  found  herself  among  the  very  flower  of 
the  aristocracy.  The  old  Duchess  had  ladies  in  wait- 
ing of  various  degrees,  and  innumerable  servants  and 
attendants,  all  graded  and  classified.  Before  any 
one  entered  her  august  presence,  it  was  necessary  to  go 
through  a  long  series  of  scrutinies  and  cross-examina- 


16    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

tions.  The  only  rebel  against  these  ceremonies  was 
little  Katya.  She  objected  to  bowing  before  the 
Duchess  as  before  a  goddess.  Her  mother  told  her 
that  the  Duchess  was  her  elder  in  years,  and  demanded 
reverence;  but  Katya  felt  that  the  old  lady  preferred 
submission  to  reverence,  and  fear  to  love. 

The  mother  had  brought  the  children  up  on  the  Bible 
and  religious  stories ;  but  in  the  Duchess's  library  they 
found  material  of  every  kind.  There  were  pictures  of 
foreign  countries,  landscapes  and  love  scenes,  romances 
and  books  of  history  and  travel.  At  nine  years  old 
Katya  had  read  the  whole  of  Karanzin's  "History  of 
Russia",  in  several  volumes.  She  read  books  of  travel 
with  eagerness,  and  remembered  the  details  so  well  that 
once,  years  after,  when  she  talked  about  foreign  coun- 
tries with  the  captain  of  a  ship,  he  felt  sure  that  she 
must  have  actually  visited  the  places  she  described. 
Her  practical  mind  led  her  also  to  devour  discussions 
of  the  market  price  of  wheat,  of  land,  etc.,  and  to  study 
her  father's  business  records  and  letters.  She  did  not 
care  for  fiction.  What  interested  her  was  real  life. 

As  she  learned  more,  she  grew  more  and  more  heart- 
sick over  the  way  the  peasants  were  treated.  When 
she  was  but  ten  years  old,  her  indignation  against  the 
flogging  of  the  serfs  broke  out  in  such  hot  words  that 
her  old  peasant  nurse  begged  her  to  speak  low. 

"My  father  helped  me  to  think,"  she  says.  "He 
was  a  man  of  broad,  liberal  ideas.  We  read  together 
many  books  of  science  and  travel.  Social  science 
absorbed  me.  By  sixteen  I  had  read  much  of  Voltaire, 
Rousseau,  and  Diderot,  and  I  knew  the  French  Revolu- 
tion by  heart.  I  spoke  French  from  babyhood,  and 
my  German  governess  had  taught  me  German;  and 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION      17 

at  that  time  the  world's  best  thought  was  not  garbled  by 
the  Russian  censorship. 

"Fired  by  such  ideas,  I  saw  the  poor,  degraded 
slaves  around  me,  and  longed  to  set  them  free.  At  first 
I  believed  that  freedom  could  be  reached  without  a 
radical  change  of  government.  No  revolutionary 
spirit  had  yet  been  kindled.  It  was  the  first  great 
era  of  the  Liberals.  The  emancipation  of  the  serfs 
was  soon  to  take  place ;  so  too  the  introduction  of  trial 
by  jury ;  and  these  promised  reforms  sent  a  social  im- 
pulse sweeping  through  Russia.  I  was  thrilled  by  the 
glad  news.  Filled  with  young  enthusiasm,  I  opened  a 
little  school  near  our  estate. 

"I  found  the  peasant  an  abject,  ignorant  creature, 
who  did  not  understand  even  the  meagre  rights  he 
already  had.  He  could  think  only  of  his  mud  hut  and 
his  plot  of  ground.  As  for  the  government,  he  knew 
only  that  in  peace  he  must  pay  money ;  in  war,  lives. 
The  new  rumors  had  kindled  his  old  heart-deep  hope 
of  freedom.  The  twenty  peasants  in  my  school,  like 
the  millions  in  Russia,  suspected  that  the  proclamation 
had  been  hidden,  and  often  went  to  the  landowners 
demanding  their  freedom.  At  last  the  manifesto 
emancipating  the  serfs  arrived." 

This  was  in  1861,  when  Catherine  was  seventeen.  It 
was  an  era  of  hope  and  enthusiasm  among  the  Russian 
Liberals.  But  in  some  respects  emancipation  made  the 
lot  of  the  peasants  worse  instead  of  better.  Under  the 
old  regime,  each  serf,  besides  cultivating  his  master's 
estates,  had  had  a  plot  of  ground  on  which  he  raised 
food  for  his  own  family.  He  had  supposed  that  this 
plot  of  ground  would  still  belong  to  him.  He  soon 
found  his  mistake. 


18    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"The  peasant  was  free.  No  longer  bound  to  the 
land,  his  landlord  ordered  him  off.  He  was  shown  a 
little  strip  of  the  poorest  soil,  there  to  be  free  and  starve. 
He  was  bewildered;  he  could  not  imagine  himself 
without  his  old  plot  of  land.  For  centuries  past,  an 
estate  had  always  been  described  as  containing  so 
many  'souls.'  It  was  sold  for  so  much  per  'soul.' 
The  '  soul '  and  the  plot  had  always  gone  together.  So 
the  peasant  had  thought  that  his  soul  and  his  plot 
would  be  freed  together.  In  dull  but  growing  rage, 
he  refused  to  leave  his  plot  of  land  for  the  wretched 
strip.  'Masters,'  he  cried,  'how  can  I  nourish  my  little 
ones  through  a  Russian  winter?  Such  land  means 
death.'  This  cry  rose  all  over  Russia. 

"The  government  appointed  in  every  district  an 
'arbiter'  to  persuade  the  peasants.  The  arbiter  failed. 
Then  troops  were  quartered  in  their  huts,  families 
were  starved,  old  people  were  beaten  by  drunkards, 
daughters  were  raped.  The  peasants  grew  more  wild, 
and  then  began  the  flogging.  In  a  village  near  ours, 
where  they  refused  to  leave  their  plots,  they  were 
driven  into  line  on  the  village  street;  every  tenth 
man  was  called  out  and  flogged  with  the  knout ;  some 
died.  Two  weeks  later,  as  they  still  held  out,  every 
fifth  man  was  flogged.  The  poor  ignorant  creatures 
still  held  desperately  to  what  they  thought  their  rights ; 
again  the  line,  and  now  every  man  was  dragged  forward 
to  the  flogging.  This  process  went  on  for  five  years  all 
over  Russia,  until  at  last,  bleeding  and  exhausted,  the 
peasants  gave  in. 

"I  heard  heartrending  stories  in  my  little  school- 
house,  and  many  more  through  my  father,  the  arbiter 
of  our  district.  The  peasants  thronged  to  our  house 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    19 

day  and  night.  Many  were  carried  in,  crippled  by  the 
knout.  Sobbing  wives  told  of  husbands  killed  before 
their  eyes.  Often  the  poor  wretches  literally  grovelled, 
clasping  my  father's  knees,  begging  him  to  read  the 
manifesto  again  and  find  it  was  a  mistake,  beseeching 
him  to  search  for  help  in  that  mysterious  region,  the 
law  court.  From  such  interviews  he  came  to  me  worn 
and  haggard. 

"I  now  saw  how  ineffectual  were  my  attempts;  I 
felt  that  tremendous  economic  and  political  changes 
must  be  made;  but  I  was  still  a  Liberal,  and  thought 
only  of  reform,  not  of  revolution.  To  seek  guidance,  to 
find  out  what  older  heads  were  thinking,  I  went  at 
nineteen  with  my  mother  and  sister  to  St.  Petersburg. 
Into  our  compartment  on  the  train  came  a  handsome 
young  prince  returning  from  official  duties  in  Siberia. 
For  hours  he  discussed  with  me  the  problems  that  were 
rushing  upon  us.  His  words  thrilled  like  fire.  Our 
excited  voices  rose  steadily  higher,  until  my  mother 
begged  me,  as  my  nurse  had  done  before,  to  speak  low. 
That  young  prince  was  Peter  Kropotkin." 

In  Petrograd,  Catherine  joined  the  central  group  of 
Liberals,  men  and  women  of  noble  birth  and  university 
training ;  doctors,  lawyers,  journalists,  novelists,  poets, 
scientists.  Since  higher  education  for  women  was 
strictly  forbidden,  they  had  already  become  law- 
breakers by  opening  classes  for  women  in  the  natural 
and  political  sciences.  All  these  classes  she  attended. 

Her  mother  fell  ill  and  had  to  go  home.  She  wanted 
to  take  Catherine  with  her ;  but  the  young  girl  objected. 
She  longed  for  independence ;  she  believed  it  to  be  a 
duty  to  earn  her  own  living.  Many  of  the  younger 
nobility  had  come  to  the  same  conviction.  Prince 


20    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

Kropotkin,  in  his  "Memoirs  of  a  Revolutionist", 
quotes  the  words  of  the  Russian  poet,  Nekrasof, 
"The  bread  that  has  been  made  by  slaves  is  bitter." 
He  adds : 

"The  young  generation  actually  refused  to  eat  that 
bread,  and  to  enjoy  the  riches  that  had  been  accumu- 
lated in  their  fathers'  houses  by  means  of  servile  labor, 
whether  the  laborers  were  actual  serfs,  or  slaves  of  the 
present  industrial  system. 

"All  Russia  read  with  astonishment,  in  the  indict- 
ment produced  in  court  against  Karakozoff  and  his 
friends,  that  these  young  men,  owners  of  considerable 
fortunes,  used  to  live  three  or  four  in  a  room,  never 
spending  more  than  five  dollars  apiece  a  month  for  all 
their  needs,  and  giving  their  fortunes  to  start  coopera- 
tive associations,  cooperative  workshops  (where  they 
themselves  worked),  and  the  like.  Five  years  later, 
thousands  and  thousands  of  the  Russian  youth  — 
the  best  part  of  it  —  were  doing  the  same.  During 
the  years  1860-1865,  in  almost  every  wealthy  family  a 
bitter  struggle  was  going  on  between  the  fathers,  who 
wanted  to  maintain  the  old  traditions,  and  the  sons 
and  daughters,  who  defended  their  right  to  dispose  of 
their  lives  according  to  their  own  ideals.  Young  men 
left  the  military  service,  the  counter,  the  shop,  and 
flocked  to  the  university  towns.  Girls  bred  in  the  most 
aristocratic  families  rushed  penniless  to  St.  Petersburg, 
Moscow,  and  Kiev,  eager  to  learn  a  profession.  .  .  . 
After  hard  and  bitter  struggles,  many  of  them  won 
personal  freedom.  Now  they  wanted  to  utilize  it, 
not  for  their  own  personal  enjoyment,  but  to  carry  to 
the  people  the  knowledge  that  had  emancipated  them.*' 

Catherine  compromised  with  her  mother  by  entering 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    21 

a  nobleman's  household  as  governess  to  his  children. 
It  was  useful  work,  and  it  enabled  her  to  stay  in  the 
city.  She  held  this  position  for  two  years  and  a  half, 
and  was  well  treated,  her  character  commanding  both 
affection  and  respect.  Meanwhile  she  studied  the 
working  of  the  zemstvo.  Every  institution  that  was  a 
beginning  of  representative  government,  however  im- 
perfect, was  holy  in  the  eyes  of  the  Russian  "intellec- 
tuals." 

Her  father  finally  insisted  upon  her  returning  home. 
He  promised  that  she  should  be  independent,  and  live 
on  her  own  earnings.  He  helped  her  to  open  a  board- 
ing school  for  girls,  and  through  the  influence  of  her 
relatives  she  obtained  many  pupils,  daughters  of  rich 
parents,  who  paid  for  their  instruction.  Her  father 
also  built  her  a  cottage  where  she  taught  the  peasant 
children  free.  All  that  she  earned  above  her  livelihood 
she  devoted  to  helping  the  peasants.  She  would  buy 
a  cow  for  one,  a  horse  for  another,  doing  her  utmost 
to  relieve  the  misery  around  her.  "  I  now  drew  closer 
to  the  people,"  she  says.  "I  began  to  realize  the  dull 
memory  every  peasant  has  of  flogging  and  toil  from 
time  immemorial.  I  felt  their  subconscious  but  heart- 
deep  longing  for  freedom." 

Three  years  later,  at  the  age  of  twenty-five,  she 
married  a  liberal,  broad-minded  young  nobleman,  with 
a  good  education  and  a  good  heart.  He  was  active 
in  the  district  zemstvo,  and  took  a  sincere  interest  in 
the  peasants.  He  was  glad  to  help  Catherine  in  her 
good  work,  and  they  established  a  cooperative  bank 
and  a  peasants'  agricultural  school.  Several  of  the 
younger  landowners  became  interested,  and  they  met 
together  frequently. 


22    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

Catherine,  however,  felt  the  need  of  doing  something 
more  radical.  In  quest  of  more  light  and  more  helpers, 
she  went  to  Kiev,  where  one  of  her  sisters  was  nursing 
a  husband  lying  at  the  point  of  death.  Catherine 
attended  the  funeral,  and  comforted  the  widow.  Just 
then  she  got  a  letter  from  Kovalik,  the  friend  of  her 
childhood,  announcing  that  he  and  several  others  who 
were  profoundly  dissatisfied  with  the  state  of  things  in 
Russia  were  going  to  America  to  found  a  colony  where 
everybody  would  work  with  their  hands  as  well  as 
their  brains  —  a  sort  of  Brook  Farm.  He  invited  her 
to  join  them.  She  replied  : 

"  Never.  How  can  we  leave  Russia  now,  when  there 
is  so  much  of  importance  to  be  done  here,  that  is  hardly 
even  begun?  In  America  they  are  better  off  without 
us  than  the  people  in  Russia  are  with  us." 

Meanwhile  she  looked  about  her  in  Kiev  for  recruits 
to  the  cause  of  progress.  She  knew  no  one  in  the  city, 
but  she  determined  to  search  for  "good  people."  The 
university  students  had  established  a  lunch  room  where 
meals  could  be  had  for  six  rubles  a  month.  Any  out- 
sider could  eat  there  at  the  same  price.  Catherine 
paid  for  a  month's  board  in  advance,  and  came  every 
day,  to  eat  and  observe.  The  room  occupied  the  whole 
ground  floor  of  an  old  wooden  building.  The  tables 
were  long  rough-hewn  fixtures,  with  tablecloths  not  over 
clean.  At  each  corner  stood  piles  of  thick,  heavy  white 
plates,  and  at  meal  times  these  would  be  dropped  along 
in  a  row  with  a  great  clatter,  amid  the  din  made  by  the 
students,  talking,  discussing,  and  waxing  hot  in  argu- 
ment, seemingly  much  more  interested  in  feeding  their 
minds  than  their  stomachs.  Catherine  was  wearing 
her  old-fashioned  Atlas  fur,  with  its  short  sleeves, 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    23 

sable  collar,  and  satin  hood  —  a  garb  long  out  of  style ; 
but  neither  she  nor  the  students  cared  about  fashion. 
Dinner  was  served  from  one  to  five  P.M.,  and  she  ate 
leisurely,  meanwhile  watching  the  students'  faces, 
listening  to  their  talk,  and  trying  to  judge  of  their 
characters.  After  a  while  she  wrote  on  slips  of  paper 
her  name  and  the  address  of  the  hotel  where  she  and 
her  sister  were  staying,  and  the  next  day  at  dinner  time 
she  distributed  the  slips  to  the  students  who  had  made 
the  most  favorable  impression  upon  her,  saying,  "  Come 
to  see  me,  and  let  us  talk  things  over." 

Five  students  came  the  same  evening.  They  were 
frank,  sympathetic  young  men,  students  not  only  of 
books  but  of  life.  She  came  to  the  point  at  once. 
"Why  are  you  doing  nothing,"  she  said,  "when  the 
great  mass  of  the  people  in  Russia  are  starving,  with 
the  yoke  on  their  necks  and  the  wolf  at  the  door? 
Why  are  you  idlers  ?  Why  do  you  use  the  academic  to 
screen  your  eyes  from  the  real?" 

All  gave  the  same  answer  :  "  We  are  idlers ;  but  what 
is  to  be  done?  How  can  we  make  things  better?" 
Some  of  them  were  acquainted  with  revolutionists : 
but  they  were  not  sure  whether  they  wanted  to  become 
revolutionists  themselves  or  not. 

No  immediate  answer  could  be  given  to  their  ques- 
tion, "What  is  to  be  done?"  But  they  began  to  culti- 
vate a  closer  acquaintance  with  the  revolutionists,  and 
introduced  Catherine  to  them. 

Soon  she  was  summoned  home.  Then  she  and  her 
husband  and  their  little  circle  of  Liberals  made  a 
vigorous  effort  to  secure  better  treatment  for  the  peas- 
ants through  political  action. 

She  says;   "It  is  a  poor  patriot  that  will  not  thor- 


24    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

oughly  try  his  government  before  he  rises  against  it. 
We  searched  the  laws  and  edicts;  we  found  certain 
scant  and  long-neglected  peasants'  rights  of  local  suf- 
frage ;  and  then  we  began  showing  the  peasants  how  to 
use  these  rights  that  they  already  had." 

Catherine  proved  an  effective  speaker  at  the  meetings 
they  held  among  the  peasants.  She  had  a  clear, 
strong  voice;  she  could  talk  to  the  people  in  words 
that  they  understood;  and  she  exercised  the  power 
that  always  emanates  from  a  great  personality  and  a 
great  heart. 

The  peasants  flocked  to  the  local  elections,  and  began 
electing  men  of  liberal  views  as  judges,  arbiters,  and 
other  officials.  One  of  Catherine's  brothers  was  chosen 
as  a  judge,  and  so  was  her  friend  Kovalik,  whose  plan 
of  starting  a  colony  in  America  had  encountered  many 
difficulties  and  had  been  indefinitely  postponed.  While 
he  was  on  a  visit  to  the  Verigos,  Catherine  persuaded 
him  to  become  a  candidate.  As  a  resident  of  another 
province  he  was  disqualified;  but  Constantine  Verigo 
made  a  nominal  lease  of  his  estate  to  Kovalik,  and  thus 
rendered  him  eligible.  He  was  a  man  of  marked  ability, 
and  a  natural  leader.  The  other  judges  elected  him 
as  their  chief;  and  in  three  months  he  cleared  up  an 
accumulation  of  eight  hundred  cases  that  had  clogged 
the  docket  for  years.  He  and  the  other  Liberal  officials 
decided  all  cases  with  strict  justice  to  the  peasants, 
and  defended  their  legal  rights  against  the  oppression 
of  the  nobility.  But  when  the  more  despotic  land- 
owners were  ousted  from  the  positions  that  they  had 
made  a  source  of  graft,  they  denounced  the  little  group 
of  Liberals  to  the  Minister  of  the  Interior  as  a  band  of 
conspirators  against  the  government.  In  less  than  a 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    25 

year,  Kovalik  was  turned  out  of  his  judgeship  on  a 
technicality;  Constantine  Verigo  was  deposed  from 
office,  as  a  dangerous  man;  several  of  their  friends 
were  exiled  to  Siberia  without  trial;  Catherine  and 
her  husband  were  put  under  police  surveillance,  and 
the  school  and  the  bank  that  they  had  opened  for  the 
peasants  were  closed. 

A  rigid  inquiry  was  also  instituted  as  to  the  kind  of 
addresses  that  Catherine  had  been  making  to  the 
peasants,  and  the  Governor  of  the  province  himself 
asked  Constantine  Verigo  for  an  explanation.  Verigo 
said  that  his  daughter  had  felt  it  her  duty  to  expound 
the  new  laws  to  the  peasants,  so  that  they  might  have 
a  clearer  understanding  of  their  rights.  The  Governor 
answered  dryly,  "We  want  no  apostles  here."  He 
intimated  bluntly  to  Verigo  that  the  less  he  and  his 
household  meddled  with  peasant  questions  the  better  it 
would  be  for  them,  and  for  the  peasants  too. 

This  experience  convinced  Catherine  of  the  necessity 
of  a  change  in  the  existing  form  of  government,  before 
any  serious  improvement  could  be  brought  about.  All 
over  Russia  the  attempts  made  by  liberal-minded  men 
and  women  to  educate  and  elevate  the  peasants  by 
peaceful  means  were  meeting  with  the  same  fate. 
Punished  as  criminals  for  teaching  the  peasants  their 
legal  rights,  they  learned  to  see  the  autocratic  govern- 
ment as  it  really  was,  a  vast  system  of  corruption, 
watching  jealously  through  spies  and  secret  police  to 
keep  its  peasant  victims  from  being  taught  anything 
that  could  make  them  think  or  act  like  men. 

To  try  to  overthrow  the  autocracy  was  to  face  im- 
prisonment, torture,  exile,  and  death.  Catherine  was 
twenty-six  years  old.  Her  husband,  like  herself,  had  a 


26    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

whole  life  before  him.  She  felt  that  it  was  only  fair 
to  put  the  matter  frankly  before  him.  She  asked  him  if 
he  was  ready  to  expose  himself  to  these  tremendous 
consequences.  He  answered  that  he  was  not.  "I 
am,"  she  said;  and  she  started  out  upon  the  under- 
taking without  him. 

She  secured  letters  of  introduction  to  such  noblemen 
as  had  shown  a  wish  to  improve  the  condition  of  the 
peasants,  and  traveled  about  the  country  visiting  their 
estates,  and  studying  whatever  they  had  done  in  the 
way  of  starting  schools,  cooperative  workshops,  and  the 
like.  She  tried  to  impress  upon  them  that  the  funda- 
mental need  was  for  the  peasants  to  own  the  land; 
but  she  could  not  make  the  nobles  see  it.  She  also 
found  that  the  heavy  hand  of  the  government  was 
always  ready  to  shut  down  upon  even  their  mildest 
efforts  at  improvement.  She  came  home  feeling  that 
she  had  gained  nothing  but  experience  and  an  added 
knowledge  of  life. 

By  this  time  the  spirit  of  revolution  was  fairly  awake. 
A  Liberal  named  Nechayev  had  gathered  together  a 
group  of  revolutionists.  They  were  discovered  and 
arrested,  and  their  trial  in  1871  was  the  first  great  event 
in  the  long  struggle  for  freedom.  The  procession  of 
political  exiles  along  the  Great  Siberian  Road  had  begun. 
Meanwhile  their  revolutionary  documents  had  been 
published,  and  were  read  by  thousands  of  Liberals 
throughout  Russia. 

Catherine  went  to  Kiev,  and  joined  a  revolutionary 
group. 


CHAPTER  III 

THE  revolutionists  at  this  time  were  divided  into 
Lavrists  and  Bakuninites,  according  as  they  favored 
the  program  of  Peter  Lavrov  or  Michael  Bakunin.  The 
Lavrists  believed  that  the  peasants  must  be  gradually 
educated  for  freedom  and  revolution.  The  Bakuninites 
believed  in  organizing  the  peasants  for  revolution  as 
promptly  as  possible.  They  held  that  they  would 
soon  be  ripe  for  revolt,  because  of  the  prevailing  misery. 
"Hunger  is  the  most  efficient  teacher,"  they  said. 
"Tell  the  peasant  why  he  is  hungry,  and  show  him  how 
he  can  feed  himself,  and  he  will  learn  quite  readily." 

Lavrov  and  Bakunin,  who  were  then  living  in  Switzer- 
land as  political  refugees,  were  good  friends  despite 
their  difference  of  view,  and  so  were  most  of  their 
followers.  It  was  a  difference  of  method  only;  their 
aim  was  the  same.  Both  Lavrists  and  Bakuninites 
felt  that  the  nobles  had  been  living  in  wealth  and  ease 
for  centuries  on  the  labor  of  the  peasants ;  that  it  was 
only  through  oppression  and  robbery  of  the  peasants 
that  they  were  able  to  pass  their  time  in  luxury  and 
amusement;  and  the  younger  generation  looked  upon 
it  as  their  duty  to  make  reparation  to  the  peasants,  so 
far  as  possible,  and  to  give  their  lives  to  bring  them 
freedom  and  happiness. 

Catherine,  like  most  of  those  who  had  lived  close 
to  the  peasants,  was  a  Bakuninite.  In  Kiev  she  soon 

27 


28    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

gathered  around  her  a  group  of  young  men  and  women 
who  loved  and  admired  her.  Among  these  her  special 
friend  was  Maria  Kalyenkina,  a  girl  who  later  became 
famous  for  her  courage  and  her  faith  in  the  revolution. 
She  had  been  a  village  school-teacher.  •  Under  the  in- 
fluence of  Nekrasof 's  songs  of  the  peasants,  she  became 
an  ardent  revolutionist,  and  went  to  Kiev  to  absorb 
the  most  advanced  revolutionary  ideas  of  the  day.  She 
entered  a  school  for  midwives,  and  there  met  Catherine's 
sister  Olga.  Thus  she  became  acquainted  with  Cather- 
ine, who  was  nine  years  older  than  "little  Masha", 
but  found  in  her  a  kindred  spirit.  Masha  was  quiet, 
sweet-tempered,  industrious,  and  daring  beyond  all 
others  in  a  crisis.  She  talked  little,  and  did  much.  A 
secret  entrusted  to  her  was  as  safe  as  in  the  grave.  She 
was  a  pretty  girl,  of  rather  frail  physique,  with  a  remark- 
ably fair  skin  and  yellow  hair.  She  took  no  sentimental 
interest  in  the  young  men,  though  many  of  them  took 
a  sentimental  interest  in  her.  When  Catherine  com- 
mented upon  her  indifference  to  men,  she  answered, 
"I  love  the  movement."  To  this  day  her  old  friend 
speaks  with  enthusiasm  of  this  sweet  girl,  gentle  as  a 
lamb,  yet  brave  as  a  lioness. 

From  a  smouldering  hotbed  of  revolution,  Kiev  had 
now  become  a  seething  volcano.  It  was  full  of  young 
enthusiasts  who  were  determined  to  do  or  die.  The 
movement  "To  the  people !"  which  had  been  sweeping 
all  over  Russia  was  at  its  height  in  Kiev.  Russian 
young  men  and  women  were  studying  at  Swiss  uni- 
versities, and  drinking  in  republican  ideas.  Many 
young  Russians  also  made  pilgrimages  to  Switzerland 
to  visit  Lavrov  and  Bakunin,  and  came  back  full  of 
revolutionary  zeal.  The  Russian  government  became 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    29 

alarmed,  and  issued  an  order  that  all  Russian  students 
in  Switzerland  must  return  by  a  certain  date,  or  they 
would  not  be  allowed  to  cross  the  frontier  from  Switzer- 
land into  Russia.  The  Russian  students,  however, 
used  to  stay  as  long  as  they  liked,  and  then  come  back 
by  way  of  Austria,  getting  across  the  Austrian  frontier 
with  comparative  ease;  and  Kiev  was  their  first 
stopping  place.  The  revolutionists  "made  in  Switzer- 
land" were  smuggled  into  Russia  by  way  of  Kiev. 

The  movement  "To  the  people!"  had  changed  in 
character.  After  the  emancipation  of  the  serfs,  thou- 
sands of  young  men  and  women  from  the  richer  classes 
had  asked  themselves  how  they  could  be  most  useful 
to  "the  masses",  and  decided  that  the  only  way  was  to 
go  and  settle  among  the  poor,  and  live  as  they  did. 
Prince  Kropotkin  says : 

"Young  men  went  into  the  villages  as  doctors, 
doctors'  helpers,  teachers,  village  scribes,  even  as 
agricultural  laborers,  blacksmiths,  wood-cutters,  and 
so  on,  and  tried  to  live  there  in  close  contact  with  the 
peasants.  Girls  passed  teachers'  examinations,  learned 
midwifery  or  nursing,  and  went  by  the  hundred  into 
the  villages,  devoting  themselves  entirely  to  the  poorest 
part  of  the  population. 

"These  people  went  without  any  ideal  of  social  re- 
construction in  their  minds,  or  any  thought  of  revolution. 
They  simply  wanted  to  teach  the  mass  of  the  peasants  to 
read,  to  interest  them  in  other  things,  to  give  them 
medical  help,  and  in  any  way  to  aid  in  raising  them  from 
their  darkness  and  misery;  and  at  the  same  time  to 
learn  what  were  their  popular  ideals  of  a  better  social 
life." 

This  movement  was  entirely  legal,  and  was  carried 


30    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

on  openly.  But  it  was  frowned  upon  by  the  govern- 
ment, and  the  would-be  helpers  of  the  peasants  were 
ruthlessly  suppressed.  Then  most  of  them  became 
revolutionists.  The  experience  of  Catherine  and  her 
friends  in  this  respect  was  typical. 

Thereupon  great  numbers,  including  many  of  the 
nobility,  disguised  themselves  as  peasants,  and  lived 
and  worked  side  by  side  with  the  poorest  of  the  people, 
secretly  preparing  them  for  revolution.  They  felt 
that  in  this  way  they  could  get  a  better  understanding 
of  peasant  conditions,  since  those  who  wear  the  shoe 
know  where  it  pinches.  They  also  felt  that  it  would  be 
unworthy  to  live  in  ease  and  comfort  themselves  while 
urging  the  peasants  to  face  the  greatest  dangers  and 
sacrifices.  "  We  shall  have  the  right  to  agitate  among 
them  when  we  are  of  them,"  said  Catherine.  More- 
over, this  was  the  only  way  to  overcome  the  peasants' 
timid  distrust.  Victimized  for  so  many  centuries, 
the  ex-serfs  were  as  much  afraid  of  the  revolutionists 
as  they  were  of  the  government.  The  peasant  was 
almost  like  a  dumb  animal.  If  he  cherished  any 
thoughts  of  revolt,  he  hardly  dared  tell  them  to  any 
one,  and  he  certainly  would  never  confide  them  to  a 
nobleman. 

Before  entering  upon  the  active  revolutionary  work 
which  would  take  her  away  from  home  for  good,  and 
which  was  almost  sure  to  end  in  exile  or  death,  Catherine 
made  a  round  of  farewell  visits  among  her  relatives  and 
friends.  First  she  went  to  bid  good-bye  to  her  elder 
sister  Natalie,  who :  lived  in  the  district  of  Novo- 
Aleksandriya,  in  the  province  of  Kovno.  From  there 
she  went  to  Lugovetz  for  a  last  interview  with  her 
parents  and  her  husband.  It  was  a  sad  and  memorable 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    31 

meeting.  Three  years  before,  when  Catherine's  school 
had  been  suppressed  and  her  father  dismissed  from 
office,  she  had  told  her  husband  that  she  was  ready 
to  lay  down  her  life  for  the  cause.  The  time  had  now 
come  when  she  was  to  make  the  sacrifice.  Her  hus- 
band was  overcome  with  grief.  He  begged  her  to  give 
up  her  intention,  and  go  with  him  to  their  estate  in  the 
province  of  Moghilev.  He  was  a  man  of  noble  character, 
but  he  lacked  the  iron  determination  needed  to  face  the 
terrible  consequences  of  working  for  freedom  under  the 
shadow  of  the  Czar.  Her  family  pleaded  a  still  stronger 
argument;  they  reminded  her  that  she  was  soon  to 
become  a  mother.  On  the  one  side  was  a  life  of  domestic 
love,  amid  wealth,  luxury,  and  splendor ;  on  the  other, 
prison  and  exile.  Many  would  have  said  that  duty 
bade  her  stay.  She  was  profoundly  convinced  that  the 
call  of  the  greatest  arid  gravest  duty  bade  her  go. 
Thus  believing,  she  was  resolute.  With  an  aching  heart, 
she  bade  them  all  farewell.  She  never  saw  any  of  them 
again.  Her  husband  died  soon  after  she  was  sent  to 
Siberia ;  and  before  she  returned,  her  parents  also  had 
passed  away. 

In  Kiev,  Catherine  lived  with  her  widowed  sister  Olga 
and  her  young  friend,  Masha  Kalyenkina.  Around 
these  three  as  a  nucleus  there  grew  up  a  circle  that  be- 
came known  as  "the  commune."  It  was  the  revolu- 
tionary center  of  Kiev,  and  a  powerful  influence  in  the 
awakening  of  Russia. 

They  had  to  earn  a  living  while  carrying  on  their 
revolutionary  work.  Catherine  cut  out  little  squares 
of  paper,  and  wrote  on  each  her  name  and  address, 
with  the  announcement  that  she  was  ready  to  give  expert 
instruction  in  such  and  such  subjects.  She  took  her 


32    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

stand  on  the  corner  of  a  street  where  there  was  an 
academy  for  young  ladies,  and  gave  her  cards  to  the 
girls  as  they  came  out  of  school.  Her  friends  laughed 
at  this  homely  way  of  soliciting  work,  but  it  proved 
successful.  So  many  mothers  and  aunts  and  elderly 
cousins  of  the  schoolgirls  applied  for  lessons  that  she 
had  to  turn  many  away.  She  earned  on  an  average 
one  hundred  and  forty  rubles  a  month.  This  was  ample 
for  the  needs  of  the  modest  household.  She  was  busy 
all  day  and  half  the  night,  and  always  went  to  bed 
thoroughly  tired ;  yet  she  found  her  health  better  than 
when  she  had  been  a  lady  of  leisure.  She  had  a  strong 
constitution,  and  seemed  to  thrive  on  hard  and  con- 
tinuous work. 

The  discussions  between  the  Lavrists  and  Bakuninites 
were  still  going  on,  and  sometimes  waxed  very  warm. 
One  night  when  Catherine  was  about  to  go  to  bed, 
more  weary  than  usual,  she  received  a  call  from  Axel- 
rod,  the  leader  of  the  Lavrists  in  Kiev.  His  appearance 
at  that  unusual  hour  in  a  camp  of  strong  Bakuninites 
was  a  surprise. 

"You  must  come  to  an  important  meeting,"  he  said. 
"We  have  here  two  delegates  sent  from  Peter  Lavrov, 
and  two  more  from  Odessa,  and  we  are  to  talk  over 
some  very  important  matters." 

Axelrod  had  faith  in  her  breadth  of  mind.  Although 
she  belonged  to  the  opposite  faction,  he  knew  that  she 
placed  her  love  for  the  peasants  above  all  party  lines. 

He  led  her  through  dark  side  streets  and  deserted 
alleys  to  an  unfinished  building  without  a  roof.  In  one 
of  its  rooms  seven  men  were  waiting.  Catherine  was 
the  only  woman. 

She  was  especially  impressed  by  one  of  the  group. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    33 

He  was  very  young,  with  blushing  cheeks,  and  spoke  in 
the  most  respectful  manner  to  those  present,  because 
all  of  them  were  his  elders.  Axelrod  introduced  him 
with  a  ring  of  delight  in  his  voice.  "Katya,"  he  said, 
"this  young  man  is  a  peasant.  He  was  once  a  serf, 
and  used  to  ride  as  a  footman  behind  his  master's 
coach." 

To  revolutionists,  in  those  days,  nothing  was  holier 
or  dearer  than  a  peasant  —  especially  a  peasant  who 
seemed  to  realize  their  ideals.  For  was  not  this  young 
man  educated,  and  full  of  advanced  ideas,  and  eager  to 
aid  in  spreading  liberty  and  light  ?  Axelrod  was  proud 
to  introduce  him. 

The  nobleman  who  owned  this  young  serf  had  noticed 
that  the  boy  was  exceptionally  bright,  and  had  given 
him  an  education.  When  he  came  to  Kiev  as  a  dele- 
gate, he  was  a  student  at  the  University  of  Odessa.  He 
seemed  modest  and  plain,  and  took  only  a  humble  part 
in  the  discussion.  No  one  could  guess  then  that 
seven  or  eight  years  later  he  would  become  the  most 
conspicuous  revolutionary  figure  in  Russia.  His  name 
was  Andrei  Zhelyabov.  When  the  Czar  Alexander  II, 
after  emancipating  the  serfs  and  giving  the  nation 
hopes  of  further  great  reforms,  backslid  in  his  later 
life  and  became  a  ruthless  reactionary,  it  was  Andrei 
Zhelyabov  who  organized  and  carried  through  the  con- 
spiracy that  resulted  in  his  assassination. 

In  the  unfinished  building  in  Kiev,  the  discussion 
turned  on  the  old  topic,  how  best  to  help  the  peasants. 
As  usual,  there  were  some  who  believed  in  cautious 
and  deliberate  approaches,  and  others  who  favored 
quick  action.  The  delegates  from  Lavrov  soared  to 
higher  and  higher  regions,  and  the  delegates  from 


34    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

Odessa  tried  bravely  but  unsuccessfully  to  follow  them. 
As  the  talk  grew  more  and  more  philosophical  and  ab- 
struse, Axelrod  and  Catherine  lost  all  interest  in  it,  and 
both  fell  fast  asleep. 

Catherine  was  determined  to  go  out  and  work  among 
the  peasants ;  but  she  was  advised  to  wait  a  little  while 
until  some  further  degree  of  organization  should  have 
been  effected  among  them.  Efforts  to  this  end  were 
being  made  throughout  the  country,  stimulated  from 
Petrograd  by  Kovalik  and  others  of  like  views.  The 
opponents  of  the  Bakuninites  called  them,  half 
mockingly,  "flame-seekers",  because  they  sought  out 
those  villages  where  a  longing  for  freedom  was  already 
smouldering  in  the  peasants'  hearts,  and  tried  to  fan  it 
into  flame.  Catherine  was  a  "flame-seeker." 

In  "the  commune"  life  was  carried  on  simply,  with- 
out ceremony  or  affectation.  Plain  living  and  high 
thinking  were  the  order  of  the  day.  Catherine  and 
her  friends  lived  on  the  poorest  fare,  while  their  minds 
were  busy  with  the  greatest  questions,  all  centering 
about  the  problem  of  the  peasants. 

On  the  outside,  the  homes  of  members  of  "the  com- 
mune" differed  little  from  other  houses;  but  inside  it 
was  like  a  different  world.  There  were  many  large 
rooms,  and  each  looked  like  a  workshop.  In  one  were 
carpenters'  tools,  with  noblemen  working  as  apprentices 
to  the  trade;  in  another  students  were  learning  shoe- 
making;  in  yet  another  etchers  were  preparing  metal 
seals  to  stamp  false  passports. 

There  was  a  general  office  where  letters  and  telegrams 
were  received,  all  in  cipher.  Here  young  men  and 
women  could  be  seen  discussing  political  and  economic 
questions.  Some  were  dressed  as  peasants,  others,  not 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    35 

yet  wholly  hardened  to  discomfort,  were  wearing  a  sort 
of  compromise  costume,  while  a  third  group,  newcomers, 
were  arrayed  in  the  costliest  finery  of  fashion.  It  was  a 
noteworthy  gathering  of  the  different  grades  of  radicals 
in  their  fortress,  making  preparations  for  an  attack 
upon  their  colossal  foe.  A  barefooted  man  in  peasant 
garb  might  be  seen  talking  with  a  man  dressed  in  the 
height  of  style,  the  second  listening  to  the  first  atten- 
tively and  even  deferentially,  because  of  his  wider  knowl- 
edge and  experience  of  peasant  conditions. 

The  whole  community  was  absorbed  in  the  study  of 
the  peasant.  They  would  get  together  in  the  sitting 
room  and  sing  folksongs,  or  tell  stories  of  the  peasants 
illustrating  their  simplicity  and  good  nature,  or  their 
dullness  and  superstition.  There  was  much  laughter. 
The  members  of  the  community  were  merry  and  full  of 
hope. 

One  day  Leventhal  came  into  the  group  with  his  bride, 
the  daughter  of  Doctor  Kominer.  Both  were  bare- 
footed, poorly  clad,  pale  and  exhausted.  They  had 
been  working  all  day  with  the  bricklayers,  helping  to 
put  up  a  big  building,  carrying  heavy  pails  of  water, 
and  stamping  the  lime  into  a  paste  with  their  feet. 
They  were  worn  out,  and  their  limbs  felt  sore  and  dis- 
torted. 

"It  is  no  joke,  trying  to  agitate  for  freedom  among 
men  who  toil  so  miserably,"  they  said.  "Both  they 
and  we  are  all  tired  out.  They  are  used  up,  they  cannot 
listen  without  falling  asleep ;  and  we  are  ill,  we  cannot 
muster  strength  enough  to  stand  up  and  talk." 

This  was  the  typical  argument  of  those  who  advocated 
beginning  with  minor  reforms,  improving  the  condition 
of  the  workers  so  that  they  could  get  rest  after  their 


36    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

day's  labor.  There  was  a  common  Russian  adage, 
"An  empty  stomach  makes  a  poor  student."  Then, 
too,  the  revolutionists  argued,  how  could  they  have  the 
heart  to  try  to  spur  up  a  tired,  hungry,  worn-out  man 
to  action,  and  inspire  him  with  a  fighting  spirit  ? 

To  "the  commune*'  came  also  Vera  Pavlovna,  who 
was  nominally  married  to  an  officer.  Such  marriages 
were  frequent  in  those  days.  A  girl  living  in  the 
country,  who  was  in  sympathy  with  the  revolution, 
would  wish  to  go  to  the  city  in  order  to  work  for  it, 
or  simply  in  order  to  study.  Her  conservative  parents 
would  refuse  their  sanction,  and  without  it  she  could 
not  get  a  passport.  Then  some  chivalrous  man  in 
sympathy  with  the  revolution  —  perhaps  an  officer, 
sometimes  even  a  nobleman  —  would  offer  to  marry  her, 
with  a  private  understanding  between  them  that  the 
union  was  to  be  merely  nominal.  With  the  marriage, 
the  father's  legal  authority  over  the  girl  passed  to  her 
husband.  With  his  consent,  she  could  take  out  a 
passport,  and  go  wherever  she  pleased.  He  made  no 
claim  on  her,  and  often  they  parted  after  the  wedding, 
never  to  meet  again. 

Vera  Pavlovna  with  others  went  to  work  in  some 
large  gardens  belonging  to  monks  of  the  Orthodox 
Greek  Church.  There  they  came  in  contact  with 
peasants,  and  tried  to  influence  them.  As  the  monks 
were  often  more  tyrannical  even  than  the  nobles,  there 
was  cause  enough  for  discontent;  but  when  Vera  and 
her  friends  tried  to  stir  the  peasants  to  action,  they 
answered,  calmly  :  "We  do  not  care  anything  about  the 
monks.  We  are  planting  and  gathering  these  gardens 
for  God." 

Meanwhile  a  cousin   of  Catherine's,   a  woman   of 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    37 

enlightenment  and  benevolence,  invited  her  to  visit 
her  estate  at  Goryany,  in  the  district  of  Vitebsk, 
and  to  make  it  a  center  for  her  humanitarian  activities. 
Catherine  made  the  visit,  and  was  pleased  with  the 
work  that  her  cousin  had  done  among  the  peasants. 
Before  giving  a  definite  answer,  she  went  to  Petrograd 
to  get  in  touch  with  the  leading  workers  for  freedom 
there.  She  found  much  revolutionary  sentiment  fer- 
menting throughout  the  city.  She  mentioned  her 
cousin's  plan  to  Kovalik.  He  answered,  "Katinka, 
you  have  done  enough  of  this  social  reform  work.  It 
is  high  time  for  you  to  plunge  into  the  thick  of  battle. 
Why  don't  you  join  the  ranks  ?" 

He  meant  that  she  ought  to  take  a  peasant's  pack 
upon  her  broad  shoulders,  and  go  out  to  sow  the  seeds 
of  revolution  in  the  hearts  of  the  people.  He  scorned 
half-way  measures  of  mere  benevolence. 

In  Petrograd  as  in  Kiev,  Catherine  soon  became  the 
center  of  a  circle  to  whom  she  was  a  shining  light.  Her 
strong,  simple  character,  her  winning  smile,  her  daunt- 
less courage,  her  frank,  vigorous,  and  pointed  conversa- 
tion, were  admired  wherever  the  "intellectuals"  of 
Petrograd  came  together. 

In  her  rooms  she  held  gatherings  of  young  people  who 
met  to  discuss  the  burning  questions  of  the  day,  to 
decide  what  ought  to  be  done,  and  to  plan  for  putting 
their  ardent  thoughts  into  ardent  deeds.  Many  of 
them  were  destined  to  become  famous  in  the  revolu- 
tionary movement. 

While  Catherine  was  in  Petrograd,  her  son  was 
born.  After  recovering  from  her  confinement,  she 
returned  to  Kiev,  and  joined  her  brother's  wife,  Vera, 
of  whom  she  was  very  fond.  It  had  been  agreed  that 


88    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

Vera  and  her  husband  should  undertake  the  care  of 
Catherine's  child,  and  they  had  promised  to  treat  him 
as  if  he  were  their  own.  Vera  was  living  in  "  the  com- 
mune." Catherine  found  her  ill,  and  nursed  her  ten- 
derly till  she  got  better. 

A  great  grief  befell  Catherine  at  this  time.  Her  sister 
Olga  died  of  brain  fever,  calling  in  her  delirium  upon 
Catherine,  whom  she  had  loved  better  than  any  one  else. 

"Women  have  always  loved  me.  I  am  proud  of  it," 
said  Catherine,  in  speaking  of  the  strong  friendship 
that  existed  between  her  and  her  sisters,  her  sister-in- 
law,  and  other  women. 

Her  sister-in-law  stayed  in  Kiev  for  some  time  after 
her  recovery.  Finally  her  husband  came  to  take  her 
home.  Catherine  then  had  the  anguish  of  parting  with 
her  child.  The  scene  is  still  vivid  in  her  memory. 
Outside  stood  the  coach,  drawn  by  two  restless  horses 
that  snorted  and  pawed  the  ground.  Vera  and  her 
husband  were  seated  in  the  coach.  Catherine  came 
out  to  them  with  the  baby  in  her  arms.  She  gave  the 
child  to  Vera.  For  a  moment  or  two  there  was  dead 
silence.  Then  Catherine  burst  into  tears,  weeping  and 
sobbing  like  an  inconsolable  child.  Vera  cried,  "  Katya, 
Katya !  what  is  the  matter  with  you  ? "  But  the 
mother  wept  on.  Vera  gave  her  a  hasty  kiss  on  the 
forehead,  and  the  coach  drove  rapidly  away,  rattling 
over  the  stones. 

Catherine  stood  dazed  and  bewildered.  Her  eyes 
were  fixed  upon  the  turning  wheels  of  the  coach,  and 
when  they  disappeared  in  the  distance,  she  still  gazed 
after  them.  It  was  a  bright  spring  day,  but  a  cold 
autumn  seemed  to  have  settled  down  upon  her.  She 
felt  forlorn  and  deserted.  She  says : 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    39 

"My  heart  felt  torn  into  a  thousand  pieces.  My 
feet  were  lame,  my  arms  stiff.  I  could  not  move 
from  the  spot.  I  thought  of  the  warning  that  had  been 
given  me  when  I  first  spoke  of  my  wish  to  work  for 
the  peasants.  While  I  was  still  a  girl,  they  said,  'Wait ! 
You  will  get  married,  and  that  will  tie  you  down.  Your 
young  blood  will  be  calmed;  your  running  brook  will 
become  a  quiet  lake.'  And  the  time  came  when  I  was 
married,  and  I  was  conscious  of  no  change  in  my  spirit. 
I  felt  for  the  people's  cause  as  strongly  as  ever  —  even 
more  strongly.  And  then  friends  told  me,  'Just  wait, 
you  will  have  an  estate  of  your  own  to  care  for,  and 
that  will  take  up  all  your  time  and  thoughts.'  But  my 
husband  and  I  bought  an  estate,  and  no  such  result 
followed ;  for  I  could  never  let  one  tiny  estate  outweigh 
the  vast  plains  of  all  Russia.  My  spirit  and  my  con- 
victions remained  the  same.  And  with  time  came  new 
counsel  from  friends.  Now  they  argued:  'Yes,  you 
have  remained  unchanged  by  husband  and  home,  but 
you  will  succumb  to  the  command  of  Nature.  With 
the  birth  of  a  child  will  come  the  death  of  your  revolu- 
tionary ideals.  The  wings  you  have  used  for  soaring 
high  in  the  air  among  the  clouds  you  will  now  use  to 
shelter  your  little  one.'  And  I  gave  birth  to  a  little 
one.  I  felt  that  in  that  boy  my  youth  was  buried, 
and  that  when  he  was  taken  from  my  body,  the  fire  of 
my  spirit  had  gone  out  with  him.  But  it  was  not  so. 
The  conflict  between  my  love  for  the  child  and  my  love 
for  the  revolution  and  for  the  freedom  of  Russia  robbed 
me  of  many  a  night's  sleep.  I  knew  that  I  could  not 
be  a  mother  and  still  be  a  revolutionist.  Those  were 
not  two  tasks  to  which  it  was  possible  to  give  a  divided 
attention.  Either  the  one  or  the  other  must  absorb 


40    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

one's  whole  being,  one's  entire  devotion.  So  I  gave  my 
child  to  Vera  and  my  brother,  to  be  brought  up  as 
their  own. 

"  I  was  not  the  only  one  called  upon  to  make  such  a 
sacrifice.  Among  the  women  in  the  struggle  for  Rus- 
sian freedom  there  were  many  who  chose  to  be  fighters 
for  justice  rather  than  mothers  of  the  victims  of 
tyranny." 


CHAPTER  IV 

CATHERINE  now  made  all  her  preparations  to  start 
out  as  a  missionary  of  revolution  among  the  peasants. 
She  invited  two  comrades  to  go  with  her,  Masha 
Kalyenkina  and  Yakov  Stephanovitch. 

Stephanovitch  was  one  of  the  most  sincere  among 
the  young  revolutionists.  He  was  a  boy  of  twenty, 
tall  and  broad,  with  an  open,  honest  face,  and  lips  so 
thick  that  he  was  often  called  "the  White  Negro." 
He  was  very  silent.  He  was  the  son  of  an  intelligent 
priest,  who  was  an  inspector  over  thirty  schools,  and 
who  had  secured  positions  for  many  revolutionists  as 
teachers. 

Stephanovitch  had  fitted  himself  to  be  a  shoemaker 
and  cobbler.  Masha  had  gone  among  the  dye-workers 
and  painters  and  learned  their  trade.  Then  she  taught 
it  to  Catherine.  This  was  an  itinerant  trade,  and  hence 
well  suited  to  revolutionists. 

One  bright  morning  in  July,  1874,  the  three  set  out 
together  from  "the  commune."  Interested  eyes 
watched  them  from  every  window,  as  they  passed 
down  the  narrow  street.  All  three  were  dressed  as 
peasants,  and  carried  packs  on  their  backs,  containing 
a  few  coarse  garments  and  the  tools  of  their  respective 
trades.  They  were  provided  with  false  passports. 
Catherine's  passport  described  her  as  forty  years  of 

41 


42    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

age,  though  she  was  only  thirty.  A  skilful  arrange- 
ment of  her  hair  beneath  a  peasant  woman's  shawl 
gave  her  the  appearance  of  added  years.  She  wore 
enormous  bark  shoes,  a  shirt  of  thick  canvas,  a  skirt 
of  coarse  sacking,  and  a  black  jacket  with  a  loose  red 
belt.  She  had  used  acid  on  her  face  and  hands. 
The  two  women  carried  boards  for  painting  and  dye- 
ing. The  party  passed  as  three  cousins  from  the 
province  of  Orlov  in  Great  Russia. 

It  was  a  beautiful  day.  Catherine  and  her  com- 
panions were  very  happy.  Their  hearts  were  over- 
flowing with  good  will  towards  all  mankind,  and  in 
their  love  for  the  oppressed  they  found  a  sort  of  reli- 
gious joy. 

They  made  their  way  to  a  port  on  the  Dnieper  River 
where  a  boat  was  about  to  start  for  the  city  of  Tcher- 
kass.  It  was  full  of  laborers  and  peasants,  who  were 
talking  and  eating.  The  three  travelers  pulled  out 
of  their  wallets  bread,  dried  fish,  and  cider,  and  began 
to  eat  and  drink  with  the  rest.  Some  of  the  peasants 
asked  them  where  they  came  from  and  whither  they 
were  bound.  They  answered,  "We  come  from  Orlov, 
and  we  are  looking  for  work.  We  have  heard  that 
in  such  and  such  a  town  there  is  need  of  workers  in 
our  line." 

There  was  nothing  strange  in  this.  Since  the  eman- 
cipation of  the  serfs,  swarms  of  destitute  peasants  who 
had  lost  their  land  had  been  wandering  all  over  Russia 
looking  for  work.  This  explanation  also  made  it 
needless  for  them  to  try  to  imitate  the  peasant  speech 
of  the  province.  The  dialect  of  Great  Russia  was  so 
different  from  that  of  Little  Russia  that  the  peasants 
could  not  tell  whether  they  were  speaking  like  educated 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    43 

persons  or  like  peasants.  Catherine  and  Masha  had 
the  soft  hands  of  women  who  had  never  done  heavy 
manual  labor;  but  when  Catherine  explained  that 
they  had  been  the  servants  of  a  wealthy  nobleman,  it 
was  assumed  that  they  had  been  employed  in  some 
of  the  lighter  tasks.  As  for  Stephanovitch,  his  hands 
were  already  callous  with  hard  work. 

At  Tcherkass,  as  they  trudged  up  the  sandy  hill 
from  the  landing,  little  Masha  found  herself  unequal 
to  the  weight  of  her  heavy  pack.  It  bowed  her  down 
more  and  more.  Her  friends  wanted  to  relieve  her. 
At  first  she  rejected  their  help  with  indignation,  say- 
ing, "What  sort  of  a  peasant  woman  am  I,  if  I  cannot 
carry  a  load?"  At  last  she  had  to  succumb,  and  let 
the  others  divide  part  of  her  burden  between  them. 

Presently  they  came  to  a  statue  of  the  great  Russian 
poet,  Shevchenko.  They  were  curious  to  find  out 
how  much  the  peasants  knew  about  this  man,  who  had 
been  one  of  the  best  friends  of  their  cause.  Some  had 
never  heard  of  him ;  others  thought  he  had  been  some 
mighty  man  revered  by  the  nobility.  This  was  all 
they  could  learn. 

When  they  reached  the  heart  of  the  city  they  felt 
as  if  everybody  were  looking  at  them;  but  they  were 
soon  reassured.  Nobody  took  any  notice  of  them. 
They  walked  till  they  were  tired,  then  sat  down  on  a 
little  rocky  eminence,  and  shared  a  loaf  of  bread. 

They  passed  through  the  city,  to  the  last  row  of  low 
wooden  houses,  and  out  into  the  open  country.  On 
one  side  the  vast  plains  stretched  away  without  end; 
on  the  other  the  forest  seemed  to  frown  down  upon 
them.  Sometimes  a  coach  rattled  by,  covering  them 
with  clouds  of  dust,  Sometimes  the  road  was  swampy. 


44    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

The  two  women  found  it  hard  work,  tramping  under 
a  heavy  pack.  After  a  while  they  had  to  sit  down  to 
rest  their  aching  feet.  Stephanovitch  was  used  to 
walking  for  miles  in  the  mud  and  dust,  and  he  scorned 
their  daintiness. 

"Come,  now,  you  have  had  enough  of  sitting!" 
he  said,  standing  in  front  of  them.  They  were  ex- 
hausted; but  they  knew  they  must  reach  the  next 
village  before  dusk  if  they  were  to  find  shelter  in 
any  peasant  hut.  The  peasants  were  suspicious  of 
strangers,  and  would  not  take  in  anybody  who  came 
after  dark.  They  rose  and  trudged  on. 

About  six  o'clock  they  arrived  at  the  village  of 
Byelozerye.  Thoroughly  tired,  they  sat  down  in  a 
cottage  porch.  Passing  peasants  asked  them  where 
they  came  from  and  where  they  were  going.  They 
answered  as  before,  that  they  came  from  the  province 
of  Orlov,  and  were  looking  for  work.  Soon  the  district 
clerk  appeared,  and  demanded,  with  a  haughty  ges- 
ture, "Have  you  your  passports?"  With  inward 
misgivings,  but  with  unmoved  faces,  they  pulled  their 
false  passports  out  of  their  blouses.  Stephanovitch 
asked  where  they  could  get  a  night's  lodging.  The 
clerk  did  not  condescend  to  answer.  With  the  same 
haughty  air,  he  glanced  over  the  passports,  and  handed 
them  back  without  a  word.  They  folded  them  up 
reverently  —  a  peasant  looks  upon  a  passport  as 
something  almost  sacred  —  and  put  them  back  in 
their  breasts.  All  breathed  more  freely  when  the 
functionary  had  gone. 

They  were  still  at  a  loss  for  a  lodging.  "We  must 
go  to  a  tavern,"  said  Stephanovitch.  "We  shall  find 
more  people  there."  But  it  was  the  middle  of  the 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION     45 

week,  and  the  inn  was  almost  deserted.  Only  the 
Jewish  host  sat  behind  the  counter,  and  a  tall,  ragged, 
tipsy  peasant  was  sprawling  over  a  table.  He  had 
been  a  soldier  in  the  Crimean  War,  and  his  great  delight 
was  to  tell  boastful  and  fantastic  stories  about  it. 

"None  of  our  soldiers  could  talk  with  the  Turks," 
he  began.  "But  I  talked  with  them  as  easily  as  I  do 
with  you.  I  would  meet  a  Turk  and  say  to  him, 
*  Chaldi,  Maldi ! '  and  he  would  reply  straight  to  the 
point,  *  Maldi,  Chaldi',  and  in  this  way  we  would 
keep  on  through  a  long  conversation." 

At  first  the  travelers  were  amused,  but  they  soon 
grew  tired.  They  urged  the  boaster  to  direct  them 
to  a  lodging,  but  he  stood  in  the  middle  of  the  room 
and  kept  on  declaiming  his  stories.  Finally  Stephan- 
ovitch  treated  him  to  several  glasses  of  whisky,  and 
then  he  remembered  that  a  friend  of  his,  a  widower, 
had  a  room  to  let ;  but  it  was  at  the  other  end  of  the 
village.  He  offered  to  escort  them,  but  they  assured 
him  they  could  find  the  way. 

Trudging  along  with  their  packs,  they  laughed. 
"Maldi,  Chaldi!"  said  Catherine.  "Chaldi,  Maldi!" 
answered  Stephanovitch.  Masha,  walking  slightly 
bent  under  her  burden,  smiled  in  silence. 

It  was  a  typical  little  Russian  village,  a  row  of  small 
white  houses,  and  between  every  two  houses  a  well. 
After  many  inquiries  they  found  the  place.  The  wid- 
ower agreed  to  rent  them  the  house,  but  he  warned 
them  that  it  was  too  filthy  for  them  to  sleep  in  it  that 
night.  An  old  woman,  a  relative  of  his,  generously 
invited  them  to  spend  the  night  with  her,  and  pre- 
pared some  food  for  them.  She  gave  each  a  barley 
bun,  as  big  as  a  man's  fist.  The  remembrance  of  their 


flavor  fills  Catherine  with  horror  to  this  day.  They 
ate  some  cakes,  and  then  began  to  nibble  at  the  agon- 
izing slippery  buns.  They  tried  hard  to  swallow 
them,  but  it  seemed  a  physical  impossibility.  Then 
they  thought  of  the  great  men  who  had  sprung  from 
the  peasantry,  and  who  had  been  brought  up  on  such 
fare ;  and  that  helped  them  to  get  it  down. 

During  the  meal  they  talked  with  their  hostess, 
and  described  their  hardships  while  looking  for 
work. 

"Well,  well,  no  need  to  worry,"  she  answered. 
"The  girls  will  come  to  you  to  have  their  kerchiefs 
painted,  and  their  boots,  too.  You  will  have  plenty 
to  do." 

After  the  ordeal  of  breakfast,  the  three  travelers 
went  to  look  at  their  new  home.  The  walls  were 
rotten  and  tottering,  the  floors  broken  and  carpeted 
with  vermin,  and  on  every  side  there  were  rat-holes, 
hung  with  cobwebs.  They  stood  helpless  in  the  midst 
of  the  dirt.  Perhaps  they  let  a  momentary  thought 
stray  to  the  soft  featherbeds  and  the  pots  of  roses  and 
morning  glories  in  the  chambers  of  the  homes  that 
they  had  left.  Their  hostess  remarked,  in  the  most 
matter-of-fact  way:  "You  had  better  get  some  fresh, 
warm  manure  from  the  fields  and  mix  it  with  lime. 
That  makes  a  good  wash  for  the  floor.  Then  you  can 
take  some  fresh  hay  and  arrange  the  beds." 

Mixing  the  lime  and  manure  was  considered  strictly 
a  woman's  job,  and  Stephanovitch  could  not  help. 
Catherine  and  Masha  set  to  work  courageously;  but 
the  task  of  kneading  lime  and  steaming  manure  into 
a  paste  to  varnish  a  worm-eaten  floor  was  altogether 
new  to  the  two  delicately  bred  ladies.  They  were 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    47 

overcome  with  nausea.     Stephanovitch  smiled,   with 
his  arms  folded  behind  him. 

"Woman's  work!"  he  sang  out  heartlessly. 

"Why  don't  you  help?  It's  so  hard  to  talk,  you 
know ! "  answered  Catherine  mockingly. 

"That's  a  good  one!"  retorted  Stephanovitch. 
"Why,  I  should  be  the  laughingstock  of  the  peasants 
and  their  wives  ! " 

Finally  it  was  done.  The  house  was  cleaned  as  far 
as  possible,  the  travelers'  packs  were  lugged  across 
from  their  lodging  place,  fresh  straw  was  spread,  and 
all  arrangements  were  made  for  the  night's  rest.  But 
there  was  to  be  no  sleep  for  Catherine  and  Masha. 
As  soon  as  they  blew  out  their  tallow  candles,  armies 
of  bugs  and  insects  swarmed  out  of  hiding  and  attacked 
them.  It  seemed  impossible  that  the  house  could 
have  held  so  many.  Stephanovitch  slept  as  peasants 
can,  even  under  such  circumstances;  but  the  two 
women  could  not  rest  for  a  moment.  They  kept  up 
a  constant  fight  with  the  invaders.  They  rolled  from 
side  to  side ;  they  shifted  from  their  beds  to  the  floor ; 
but  the  attacking  legions  followed  them,  and  were 
reinforced  by  armies  of  mice.  With  the  break  of 
dawn  the  tormentors  retired.  The  humming  and 
buzzing  and  squeaking  died  away,  and  the  weary  women 
got  a  few  hours'  repose. 

Then  they  started  out  to  ply  their  trade.  Masha 
painted  a  handkerchief  as  a  sample  of  what  she  could 
do,  and  Catherine  polished  a  boot  for  the  same  pur- 
pose. Stephanovitch  set  up  a  little  shoe  shop  in  one 
part  of  the  house.  They  gradually  attracted  cus- 
tomers. They  entered  into  familiar  talk  with  them, 
and  inquired  into  the  particulars  of  their  condition, 


48    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

asking  how  much  land  had  been  given  to  each  peasant, 
etc.,  etc. 

They  found  that  the  emancipation  of  the  serfs  had 
made  very  little  change  in  this  district,  because  it 
consisted  of  crown  lands,  and  there  was  no  private 
land  to  be  had.  These  peasants  had  been  serfs  not  of 
the  nobles,  but  of  the  Czar,  and  were  rather  proud  of 
the  fact.  They  were  no  better  off  for  it,  however. 
Indeed,  they  were  at  a  special  disadvantage,  because 
they  had  no  forests,  and  so  had  to  buy  their  fuel. 
Naturally,  they  stole  wood,  and  were  mercilessly 
punished  for  it.  But  they  never  thought  of  finding 
fault  with  the  Czar;  they  would  rather  have  found 
fault  with  Nature's  unequal  distribution  of  forests. 
The  Czar  was  the  father  of  all  the  peasants.  If  any- 
body was  to  blame,  it  was  the  officials.  They  had 
ordered  the  forests  to  be  burned.  Surely  the  Czar 
never  knew  of  that ! 

The  "flame-seekers"  found  no  smouldering  rebel- 
lion here.  But  they  heard  that  in  the  town  of  Smyela 
there  were  some  energetic  young  men  who  were  in 
the  habit  of  standing  up  against  the  nobles.  "There 
are  live  doings  in  Smyela,"  gossip  reported.  The 
three  apostles  tightened  their  red  Cossack  belts  and 
set  out  for  Smyela. 

At  Smyela  most  of  the  people  worked  in  the  sugar 
factories.  A  Count  Babrinski  had  received  a  large 
grant  of  unused  land.  He  sent  for  thousands  of  peas- 
ants from  the  estates  in  Great  Russia,  and  had  them 
plant  sugar  beets  and  build  refineries,  so  that  he  could 
ship  the  sugar  direct  from  his  land  to  market.  The 
town  was  made  up  of  his  two  or  three  thousand  la- 
borers. The  peasants  who  had  lived  there  from  child- 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    49 

hood,  and  were  now  married,  occupied  several  blocks 
of  small  wooden  huts.  The  unmarried  hands,  and 
those  who  came  from  other  districts  to  work,  dug  them- 
selves holes  in  the  hillside,  where  they  lived  rent 
free.  Anyone  could  scoop  himself  out  a  burrow  and 
floor  it  with  boards ;  and  the  hills  were  dotted  with 
these  burrows,  where  men,  women,  and  children  were 
huddled  together,  without  regard  to  sex  or  social  rela- 
tionship. Many  of  the  young  girls  bore  illegitimate 
children.  They  wore  their  hair  in  small  braids,  hoping 
in  this  way  to  pass  for  legitimate  wives ;  but  the  mar- 
ried women  in  the  cottages  nicknamed  them  "braiders", 
and  looked  upon  them  and  their  children  with  scorn. 

The  human  rabbit  warrens  on  the  hill  were  close 
to  the  sugar  refineries,  and  the  sugar  refineries  were 
close  to  the  Count's  magnificent  palace.  One  glance 
could  take  in  the  extremes  of  poverty  and  wealth; 
and  the  breeze  brought  the  mouldy  stench  of  the  hill 
holes,  mingled  with  the  fragrance  of  the  Count's 
gardens  and  kitchen. 

The  three  wandering  idealists  found  a  tiny  cabin 
in  which  an  old  man  lived  close  by  the  cottage  of  his 
married  son,  and  persuaded  him  to  rent  it  to  them. 
He  was  tall,  broad-shouldered,  and  erect,  despite  his 
eighty  years,  with  a  flowing  beard,  and  a  bright, 
energetic  face.  In  his  youth  he  had  been  shipped 
to  Smyela,  along  with  many  other  young  men,  to  work 
on  Count  Babrinski's  estate.  The  pioneer  labor  on 
the  land  was  very  hard,  and  the  peasants  were  flogged 
almost  to  death.  So  ruthless  was  the  Count's  treat- 
ment that  they  made  up  their  minds  to  combine 
against  him.  The  old  man  recalled,  with  a  flash  in 
his  eye,  how  he  had  led  them.  But  soldiers  were  sent 


50    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

against  them,  and  they  were  put  down  after  a  few 
volleys  of  grapeshot  and  many  floggings.  He,  as  the 
leader,  had  been  so  beaten  that  he  was  confined  to  his 
bed  for  weeks.  Since  then  there  had  been  no  rebellion. 

This  old  man  had  many  talks  with  Catherine  and 
her  friends,  and  showed  them  much  kindness,  supply- 
ing them  with  many  small  conveniences ;  but  he  knew 
that  they  were  poor,  and  he  refused  all  their  invitations 
to  dine  with  them.  Finally  Catherine  got  around 
the  difficulty  by  inviting  him  to  come  over  for  a  talk, 
and  then  offering  him  a  share  of  the  dinner  casually, 
as  a  sort  of  secondary  phase  of  the  discussion.  He 
would  wax  enthusiastic  over  the  work  to  be  done 
against  the  oppression  of  the  nobles. 

"We  must  fight  or  die,"  Catherine  and  her  friends 
would  say  to  him.  "We  must  be  silent  and  ready, 
not  silent  and  helpless." 

"Ah,  if  I  were  only  in  my  teens  again!"  he  would 
sigh.  "But  winter  lies  thick  on  me,  and  I  am  stiff 
and  old.  We  need  youth  for  that." 

They  got  acquainted  with  a  younger  peasant  named 
Ivan,  and  tried  to  indoctrinate  him. 

"What  made  you  leave  Orlov?"  he  asked. 

"We  could  not  get  any  ground  to  till.  When  we 
were  freed  from  serfdom,  we  were  freed  from  the  land, 
too  —  that  is,  we  were  free  to  leave." 

"Well,  that's  nothing  new,"  said  Ivan.  "We  have 
had  the  same  trouble  right  here.  Why,  there  isn't 
even  any  pasture  land  for  the  cows,  or  any  plots  for 
gardens.  We  have  to  buy  everything  we  need;  and 
we  have  to  pay  for  it,  too." 

Under  serfdom,  the  peasants  had  been  able  to  supply 
most  of  their  wants  from  the  soil. 


LITTLE   GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    51 

"The  time  has  come  now  when  we  must  all  work," 
went  on  Ivan.  "From  the  tiniest  tot  to  the  oldest 
man  —  men,  women,  and  children ;  we  all  have  our 
price :  the  men  at  forty  kopeks  a  day,  the  women  at 
twenty-five,  and  the  kiddies  at  ten." 

But  when  Catherine  tried  to  show  him  that  they 
must  join  hands  against  the  government,  he  answered : 

"It  can't  be.  The  Czar  knows  nothing  of  all  these 
things  that  his  officials  and  subordinates  do.  They 
are  all  rascals,  and  they  keep  it  from  him,  for  fear  of 
being  punished  if  he  knew.  Why,  do  you  think  the 
Czar  is  a  fool?  Do  you  think  he  does  not  know  that 
without  land  the  peasant  cannot  live?" 

Catherine  insisted  that  the  Czar  was  no  better 
than  the  nobles,  and  that  he  was  in  league  with  them. 

Ivan  answered :  "  How  can  it  pay  the  Czar  to  be  on 
the  side  of  the  nobles  when  they  are  only  a  handful 
and  the  peasants  are  millions?  Besides,  who  pays 
all  the  taxes?  Who  serves  in  the  army?  Who  feeds 
the  nation?  The  peasant,  and  only  the  peasant." 

"What  you  say  is  very  true,"  answered  Catherine, 
"but  for  all  that,  the  Czar  is  the  peasants'  enemy. 
Who  is  the  Czar?  He  himself  is  a  nobleman.  He 
feasts  and  drinks  with  the  nobles  about  him.  They 
are  his  friends  and  advisers.  What  he  says,  they  do, 
and  what  they  want,  he  says." 

But  Ivan  persisted :  "  The  Czar  is  good  to  his 
peasants.  They  are  his  children.  Everything  that 
is  bad  comes  from  the  barons  and  the  lords." 

To  the  Russian  peasants,  the  Czar  was  a  deity. 
It  was  easier  for  them  to  believe  the  most  fantastic 
fables  than  to  give  up  their  faith  in  the  "  good  Little 
Father."  They  were  firmly  convinced  that  the  book 


52    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

of  laws  issued  by  the  Czar  when  serfdom  was  abol- 
ished had  been  intercepted  by  some  conscienceless 
officials,  who  had  torn  out  of  it  several  pages  full  of 
blessings  for  the  peasants,  and  had  interpolated  a 
long  list  of  oppressive  laws  that  the  Czar  never  meant 
or  knew  anything  about.  Their  hope  was  that  some 
day  some  peasant  might  discover  the  original  pages  in 
his  haystack  or  pigpen. 

But  Catherine  persisted : 

"You  say  the  Czar  is  the  peasants'  friend.  Well, 
how  about  the  army?  To  whom  does  that  belong? 
Is  it  not  the  Czar's?'* 

"It  is." 

"And  who  commands  the  army  and  tells  it  what 
to  do?  Is  not  that  the  Czar's  business?" 

"It  is." 

"  Then  why  do  the  soldiers  flog  and  shoot  you  ?  Why 
do  they  murder  you  and  your  children  in  cold  blood 
when  you  organize  clubs  ?  Because  it  is  the  Czar  who 
tells  them  to  do  it.  They  take  orders  only  from  him." 

Ivan  wrinkled  his  forehead.  He  murmured : 
"Really,  it  is  strange.  I  can't  say.  Maybe  false 
reports  are  circulated  about  us,  and  reach  the  Czar's 
ear.  You  know  how  deceitful  those  officials  are. 
They  pour  poison  into  his  ear.  God  bless  him,  what 
can  he  do?  He  doesn't  know." 

After  a  good  deal  of  talk,  Ivan  became  convinced 
that  they  would  have  to  fight,  and  fight  hard,  to  set 
things  right. 

"Are  there  others  who  have  such  ideas?"  asked 
Catherine. 

"Well,  yes,"  he  replied  guardedly.  "How  have  you 
found  it  in  other  places?" 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    53 

"Oh,  there  are  many  everywhere  who  understand 
the  truth,  and  they  are  ready  to  organize  and  join 
in  the  movement  against  the  oppressors.  The  Czar 
is  seated  on  the  peak,  far  too  high  for  you  to  reach 
him.  But  the  mountain  rests  on  your  shoulders : 
and  if  you  walk  away,  the  whole  burden  will  fall, 
and  the  peak,  which  was  formerly  high  above  your 
head,  will  lie  in  the  mud  beneath  your  feet." 

Ivan  wrinkled  his  brows  again.     He  was  thinking. 

After  repeated  conversations  with  the  revolutionists, 
he  said :  "Well,  we  will  talk  it  over.  If  there  is  to  be 
an  uprising,  we  must  all  stand  together.  The  separate 
groups  all  over  the  country  must  unite.  You  seem  to 
travel  everywhere.  Talk  it  over  with  the  people  in 
many  other  villages.  Perhaps  they  will  help  us." 

"Why,  do  you  suppose  that  I  am  the  only  one?" 
said  Catherine.  "Hundreds  and  hundreds  of  men 
and  women  all  over  Russia  at  this  moment  are  talk- 
ing to  the  peasants  as  I  talk  to  you.  The  wrongs  that 
we  children  of  the  soil  have  to  suffer  are  too  great. 
We  are  broken  and  ruined  under  them.  And  why 
must  we  endure  them?  Many  are  going  about  say- 
ing these  things.  They  are  even  distributing  books 
and  pamphlets  about  our  sorrows.  Just  see,  I  have 
such  a  booklet  here." 

She  pulled  out  from  her  blouse  "Moses  and  his  Four 
Brothers",  a  pamphlet  that  the  revolutionists  used  to 
distribute  in  the  villages.  It  was  a  story  containing 
a  concise  exposition  of  the  principles  of  freedom,  and 
a  criticism  of  the  Russian  autocracy,  sugar-coated 
over  with  romance.  She  began  to  read  this  aloud  to 
Ivan  and  his  wife.  Both  were  deeply  impressed.  Ivan 
exclaimed  with  enthusiasm : 


54    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"Those  are  golden  words!  They  speak  what  we 
feel." 

"That  is  not  enough,"  said  Catherine.  "One  feels 
much,  and  one  says  much.  But]  does  one  always 
do  enough?  You  must  make  me  acquainted  with 
others." 

"Yes,  you  are  right.  There  are  friends  and  neigh- 
bors with  whom  you  ought  to  talk.  They  too  feel  a 
great  deal.  I  will  bring  you  and  them  together." 
And  he  added,  excitedly,  "You  will  bring  along 
the  original  pages  that  were  torn  out  of  the  book  of 
laws?" 

It  was  agreed  that  the  first  meeting  of  the  factory 
hands  should  be  held  in  Ivan's  house.  Meanwhile 
Catherine  tried  to  get  in  touch  with  some  peasants 
less  gentle  and  phlegmatic  than  he.  She  heard  of 
two  brothers  in  the  sugar  refinery  who  were  noted  for 
their  pugnacity  and  grit.  They  had  been  leaders  in 
all  the  struggles  for  better  pay.  She  went  to  the  house 
of  one  of  them.  It  was  evening,  but  he  had  not  yet 
come  home.  She  found  his  wife  in  great  fear  and 
anxiety  because  of  the  disappearance  of  their  hog. 
She  knew  what  her  husband  would  do  to  her  if  the 
animal  was  lost  through  her  lack  of  watchfulness. 
Catherine  tried  to  comfort  her.  Bursting  into  tears, 
the  poor  woman  seized  her  hand  and  covered  it  with 
kisses.  It  was  an  unheard-of  thing  for  one  peasant 
woman  to  kiss  the  hand  of  another,  and  Catherine 
was  greatly  taken  aback.  She  was  afraid  the  woman 
had  penetrated  her  disguise.  But  the  unusual  act 
was  only  due  to  gratitude  for  the  unaccustomed  sym- 
pathy. The  wife's  terror  did  not  give  Catherine 
a  very  favorable  idea  of  the  husband;  nevertheless, 


LITTLE   GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    55 

she  wished  to  await  his  return,  but  the  wife  urged  her 
to  go,  not  wanting  her  to  witness  a  painful  scene. 

The  next  day  Catherine  saw  the  man,  and  talked 
to  him  about  the  many  wrongs  of  the  factory  workers. 
"It  is  strange,"  she  said,  "that  when  your  wages  are 
cut  down  a  few  kopeks  a  day  you  make  a  terrible  out- 
cry and  fight  desperately  against  it;  but  when  the 
nobles  take  away  your  land  and  all  your  rights,  you 
are  as  meek  as  cattle." 

"What  can  we  do?"  he  asked.  "If  the  crowd  holds 
back  and  only  one  man  steps  forward,  what  do  you 
expect  him  to  accomplish?  The  crowd  disowns  him 
and  the  oppressors  give  him  a  flogging  and  send  him 
to  Siberia." 

The  same  idea  had  been  expressed  to  Catherine 
again  and  again.  She  tried  the  brother,  but  found  no 
encouragement.  He  was  immensely  proud  of  the 
factory,  although  he  lived  as  miserably  as  the  rest  of 
its  two  thousand  hands.  "Where  will  you  find  such 
another  factory?"  he  boasted.  "Where  is  there  one 
that  employs  so  many  workers,  and  turns  out  so  much 
sugar  ? " 

At  last  the  Sunday  appointed  for  the  meeting  came. 
About  forty  peasants  filed  slowly  into  Ivan's  house. 
They  sat  on  chairs,  tables,  window  sills,  and  bedsteads. 

Ivan  began:  "My  brothers,  the  'original  papers' 
are  among  us.  The  good  and  noble  writings  which 
the  lawless  nobles  and  officials  tore  out  of  the  statutes 
are  now  here,  and  are  going  to  be  read  to  us." 

There  was  dead  silence.  The  peasants  were  all 
ears.  Catherine  was  almost  as  breathless  as  they. 
Her  heart  throbbed  with  joy  over  the  fulfilment  of  her 
long  cherished  hope.  For  the  first  time,  she  was  to 


56    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

address  a  gathering  of  peasants  in  a  peasant's  home 
—  not  students,  not  educated  men  and  women,  but 
the  children  of  the  soil,  the  crude,  rough  foundations 
of  the  Russian  nation.  She  said  to  them : 

"I  have  no  miraculous  papers,  stolen  from  law 
books;  but  I  have  other  valuable  papers,  which, 
although  not  written  by  the  Czar,  are  nevertheless 
full  of  sympathy  and  interest  for  the  peasants.  These 
works  are  by  very  good  people  —  indeed,  by  the  best 
people  in  Russia.  They  are  all  written  about  you  — 
about  the  wrongs  you  have  suffered  in  silence  and 
resignation,  about  the  outrages  committed  upon  you, 
and  about  your  rights  as  human  beings." 

"But  who  will  read  these  things  to  us?**  asked  the 
peasants.  None  of  them  could  read. 

"Oh,  she  —  *  Auntie,*'*  answered  Ivan. 

"What!     Can  she  read?" 

"Read!  Why,  she  reads  very  well,'*  exclaimed 
Ivan. 

She  began  to  read.  There  was  a  complete  hush. 
The  peasants  drank  in  every  word;  the  motion  of 
their  mouths  imitated  every  syllable  uttered  by  the 
reader.  She  read  in  a  clear,  strong,  pleasant  voice, 
and  with  beaming  eyes.  The  peasants  were  fasci- 
nated and  almost  hypnotized.  At  the  close,  many 
shouted : 

"God!  What  noble  words!"  "What  golden 
words!"  "What  truth!'* 

Catherine's  face  shone.  This  was  one  of  the  supreme 
moments  of  her  life. 

"Well,**  she  said,  "what  is  to  come  of  it?  We 
must  do  something.  We  cannot  remain  indifferent 
to  this  horrid  injustice  all  around  us." 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    57 

At  these  words  the  audience  awakened  from  their 
trance.  An  elderly  peasant  answered : 

"You  are  right.  Your  words  are  golden  words. 
But  how  can  we  organize  for  a  revolt?  If  we  alone 
were  to  take  arms  against  the  power  of  the  govern- 
ment, we  should  be  flogged,  ruined.  The  soldiers 
would  be  sent  against  us,  and  that  would  be  the  end 
of  it.  But  if  many  other  villages  joined  us,  then 
perhaps  — " 

"And  I  think,"  another  peasant  interrupted,  "that 
we  had  better  wait  till  the  Czar  learns  about  our 
miserable  condition,  and  the  atrocities  committed  by 
the  nobles.  Then  he  will  avenge  us." 

Catherine  told  him  that  he  was  utterly  mistaken; 
that  the  Czar  was  no  better  than  the  nobles,  perhaps 
even  worse ;  and  that  to  look  to  the  Czar  for  help  was 
like  seeking  salvation  at  the  hands  of  the  devil.  Up- 
roar followed;  not  another  intelligible  word  was 
spoken.  The  peasants  were  completely  confounded. 
To  hear  the  Czar  and  the  devil  named  in  one  breath 
was  too  much  for  them.  Catherine  withdrew  from 
the  meeting,  excited  and  a  little  disturbed. 

The  facts  leaked  out  and  reached  the  authorities. 
Stephanovitch  was  warned  that  he  must  vanish.  He 
did  so.  A  young  man  brought  the  same  warning  to 
Catherine  and  Masha,  with  a  sum  of  money.  He 
urged  them  to  start  at  once  for  Tcherkass,  where 
Stephanovitch  would  rejoin  them.  Then  he  too 
disappeared.  The  two  women  told  the  peasants  that 
they  had  had  an  offer  of  work  in  another  district, 
and  must  leave  at  once.  Every  one  was  sorry  to  have 
them  go.  Even  their  aged  host's  daughter-in-law,  a 
shrew  that  scolded  and  cursed  continually,  shed  tears 


58    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

at  their  departure.    The  old  man  himself  was  deeply 
moved.     He  said  to  Catherine: 

"I  lived  happily  with  my  wife  for  many  years,  but 
that  which  I  have  felt  toward  you  I  have  felt  toward 
no  other  woman.  You  are  one  in  a  thousand.  May 
God  help  you  in  all  that  you  undertake!" 


CHAPTER  V 

MASHA  returned  to  Kiev.  Catherine  stayed  for  a 
time  in  Tcherkass.  As  she  wandered  about  the  town, 
looking  for  new  recruits,  she  came  one  day  upon  a 
group  of  working  people  seated  on  a  stone  wall  near 
the  river,  where  they  were  employed  about  the  landing. 
Several  women  were  cooking  the  midday  meal  in  a 
large  pot  mounted  on  three  bricks.  This  was  a  com- 
munal group,  that  worked  and  ate  together.  If  any 
member  was  ill,  his  part  of  the  food  was  sent  home  to 
him.  Communal  clubs  of  this  kind  had  their  origin 
in  the  most  ancient  customs  and  traditions  of  Russia. 
Cooperative  colonies  and  other  community  under- 
takings existed  and  flourished  in  large  numbers  through- 
out the  country.  The  revolutionists  took  a  great 
interest  in  them.  They  believed  that  if  the  workers 
could  act  in  concert  to  provide  for  their  material  wants, 
they  could  learn  to  fight  in  concert  to  secure  a  free 
government. 

Catherine  was  pleased  to  come  upon  this  example 
of  folk  brotherhood.  She  greeted  the  laborers,  and 
they  responded  cordially.  Handing  her  a  spoon, 
they  urged  her  to  sit  down  and  share  their  meal. 

"Where  do  you  come  from?"  they  asked. 

"  From  Orlov.  I  am  waiting  for  my  nephew.  When 
he  arrives,  we  shall  go  together  to  look  for  work." 

59 


60    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"What  is  doing  in  your  neighborhood?"  they  said. 

"What  should  there  be  doing?  There  is  no  land  for 
the  peasants." 

"Ah!"  they  exclaimed  in  chorus,  "the  old  story  — 
no  land." 

Catherine  turned  the  conversation  to  a  village  that 
was  much  talked  about  at  the  time,  where  the  peasants, 
driven  desperate  by  the  oppression  of  the  nobles,  had 
appointed  delegates  to  go  and  complain  to  the  Czar. 

"Ah,  delegates!"  exclaimed  one  of  the  workers, 
with  a  gesture  of  despair.  "What  good  does  it  do  to 
send  delegates  ?  They  were  thrown  into  jail,  and  are 
rotting  there  to  this  day." 

"But  what  do  you  think  of  the  Czar's  not  even 
allowing  his  children,  the  peasants,  to  come  to  him 
with  their  complaints  ?  "  said  Catherine. 

"The  Czar  is  not  to  blame,"  was  the  prompt  reply. 
"You  think  he  knows  that  we  come  to  him,  and  so 
arrests  us.  But  the  nobles  and  the  officials  do  not  even 
let  us  get  near  him." 

"What  a  fine  Czar,"  said  Catherine,  "not  to  know 
when  his  peasants  want  to  see  him,  or  not  to  be  able 
to  let  them  come  to  him !  There  are  millions  and  mil- 
lions of  peasants,  and  only  a  handful  of  nobles,  yet  he 
never  sees  the  peasants,  and  he  always  sees  the  nobles. 
Do  you  call  that  justice?  Be  honest  with  yourselves 
-is  that  fair?" 

A  confusion  of  voices  arose.  The  younger  laborers 
sided  with  Catherine,  but  the  older  ones  all  defended 
the  Czar. 

"Who  freed  us  from  serfdom?"  said  one  old  man. 
"Was  it  not  the  Czar?  Have  you  so  soon  forgotten 
a  noble  deed  of  bounty?" 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    61 

Catherine  had  many  talks  with  laborers  and  peas- 
ants in  Tcherkass.  She  had  given  away  all  her  litera- 
ture, but  she  soon  learned  to  speak  to  them  so  that 
their  hearts  were  like  wax  in  her  hands.  She  was  as 
good  a  listener  as  she  was  a  talker.  Her  love  and  sym- 
pathy made  each  of  them  feel  as  if  he  were  opening  his 
heart  to  a  mother.  They  told  her  all  their  troubles. 
When  it  was  time  to  go,  they  could  hardly  tear  them- 
selves away.  They  would  go  to  the  door,  hesitate, 
and  turn  back  to  ask  about  something  they  had  for- 
gotten; walk  lingeringly  to  the  door  again,  go  out, 
and  then  send  somebody  back  to  ask  just  one  more 
question  of  the  strange,  wonderful  peasant  woman. 

When  Stephanovitch  arrived,  Catherine  and  he  took 
boat  down  the  Dnieper  River  to  the  district  of  Yelizavet- 
grad,  in  the  province  of  Kherson.  Here  there  were 
many  Dissenters,  known  as  Evangelists.  They  had 
undergone  much  persecution  from  the  government, 
but  had  resisted  so  stoutly  that  now  they  were  tacitly 
permitted  to  pray  as  they  pleased.  Not  knowing  where 
their  head  center  was,  the  two  revolutionists  said  to 
some  of  the  passengers  on  the  boat : 

"People  talk  of  a  new  sort  of  religion  in  these  parts. 
Do  you  know  what  it  is  all  about?" 

Some  of  the  peasants  looked  shocked,  others  shrugged 
and  smiled.  Some  were  too  frightened  to  take  any 
notice  of  the  question.  One  answered,  laughing : 

"Why,  do  you  want  to  join  this  new  faith?" 

They  discussed  the  Dissenters  with  everybody  who 
was  willing  to  talk  about  them,  in  order  to  find  out  how 
they  were  generally  regarded. 

One  peasant  said:  "These  Evangelists  are  certainly 
in  league  with  the  devil  and  his  imps;  for  if  you  put 


62    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

a  three-ruble  piece  on  the  doorsill  of  an  Evangelist's 
cottage,  the  next  day  you  will  find  a  hundred-ruble 
piece  in  place  of  it." 

These  stories  grew  out  of  the  fact  that  no  Evangelist 
touched  liquor,  or  squandered  his  earnings;  and  no 
stranger  was  ever  turned  away  from  the  door.  The 
priests  of  the  Orthodox  Greek  Church  denounced 
these  heretics,  and  warned  the  people  to  have  nothing 
to  do  with  them ;  but  the  peasants  found  them  humble, 
courteous,  hospitable,  and  helpful,  always  doing  good. 
They  could  not  reconcile  what  they  heard  in  church 
with  what  they  saw  in  daily  life. 

The  two  "flame-seekers"  stopped  at  the  village  of 
Lyubomirka.  Here  the  opponents  of  the  State  Church 
had  gained  a  large  following,  because  they  had  an  able 
local  leader,  Ivan  Ryobashapka.  He  was  not  only  a 
man  of  strong  character,  but  a  diplomatist.  He  was 
a  carpenter,  and  he  had  presented  the  chief  of  police 
with  a  handsomely-carved  bureau  and  the  police  in- 
spector with  a  beautiful  cabinet.  In  Lyubomirka 
the  Evangelists  were  looked  upon  leniently  by  the 
police,  while  everywhere  else  they  were  flogged.  When 
the  two  revolutionists  arrived,  Ryobashapka  was 
away,  but  was  expected  back  in  a  few  days. 

To  disarm  suspicion,  they  took  up  their  quarters 
with  a  very  orthodox  peasant.  They  rented  the  cabin 
adjoining  his  cottage,  and  there  Stephanovitch  set 
out  his  shoemaker's  tools  and  Catherine  her  dyestuffs 
and  paintbrushes.  They  questioned  their  host  and 
his  wife  about  the  Evangelists,  and  were  told  that 
they  had  a  terrible  reputation,  which  it  was  hard  even 
for  such  children  of  the  devil  to  live  up  to;  in  fact, 
their  outward  behavior  was  fairly  good,  but  of  course 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OP  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    63 

that  did  not  matter,  since  the  village  priest  declared 
that  their  religion  was  horrible. 

"Do  any  of  these  dreadful  people  live  near  here?" 
asked  Catherine. 

"Why,  there  is  one  of  them  only  next  door;  and 
what  an  Evangelist  he  is  !  His  eyes  sparkle  and  burn. 
You  cannot  look  in  his  eyes  without  feeling  that  the 
devil  is  there.  He  is  one  of  the  leaders,  too .  He 
can  talk  about  his  religion  for  hours.  He  likes  it 
better  than  food  or  work.  But  what  sort  of  religion 
can  they  have,  without  a  church,  and  without  the 
sanction  of  the  Czar?  Imagine  people  sitting  and 
singing  and  praying  within  bare  walls,  and  with  no 
sacred  candles !" 

Not  wishing  to  be  seen  going  along  the  road  to  visit 
Stephan,  the  Evangelist,  Catherine  climbed  over  the 
fence  into  his  ground.  He  stopped  work,  and  leaned 
on  his  hoe,  looking  at  her  with  his  brilliant  eyes. 

"Good  day,  brother,"  she  said. 

"Good  day,  sister,"  he  replied. 

Catherine  sat  down  on  a  pile  of  hay,  and  began  to 
sew  on  a  shirt  that  she  had  brought  with  her. 

"I  do  not  want  to  disturb  you,"  she  said.  "Finish 
your  work,  and  then  we  will  talk." 

He  dropped  his  hoe,  saying,  "It  is  easy  enough  to 
let  this  work  wait,  but  we  should  never  let  the  word 
of  God  wait  a  moment." 

Leading  her  into  the  house,  he  proceeded  to  expound 
the  doctrines  of  the  reformed  religion  with  fervor. 
How  could  she  endure  the  absurdities  of  the  Greek 
Church,  the  false  pomps  and  ceremonies  of  the  blinded 
image- worshippers  ?  Why  not  embrace  the  pure, 
the  noble,  the  only  true  faith?  His  face  shone  with 


64    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

earnestness.  A  strange  feeling  stole  over  Catherine. 
Two  apostles  of  two  different  movements  were  stand- 
ing face  to  face,  each  bent  upon  converting  the  other. 

"How  do  you  know  that  I  have  not  already  embraced 
the  doctrines  of  Evangelism  ?  "  she  said. 

"Of  course,  I  do  not  know,"  he  answered,  "but 
something  seems  to  tell  me  you  are  not  yet  a  complete 
Evangelist." 

"I  realize  fully,"  said  Catherine,  "that  the  faith 
of  the  Orthodox  Greek  Church  is  false  in  many  respects, 
and  that  it  needs  to  be  rooted  out  of  the  country. 
But  ^that  is  not  the  only  evil  in  Russia  that  needs  to 
be  rooted  out.  The  government  that  fosters  the 
Greek  Church  is  depraved,  too.  The  writings  of  the 
holy  fathers,  which  declare  the  country's  ruler  to  be 
the  anointed  of  God,  ought  to  be  destroyed  as  imbecile. 
We  go  a  step  further  than  you  Evangelists.  We 
oppose  not  merely  the  false  doctrines  in  the  State 
Church,  but  falsehood  and  evil  wherever  and  when- 
ever it  shows  itself.  We  oppose  it  in  the  laws  that 
men  make  for  their  brothers ;  we  oppose  it  in  the  daily 
life  of  every  man,  woman,  and  child.  Do  you  believe 
that  it  is  wrong  to  worship  the  image  of  God,  but  right 
to  worship  the  image  of  the  Czar?" 

"What  are  you  saying,  sister?"  asked  the  Evange- 
list, in  surprise.  "Does  not  the  gospel  say  expressly 
that  we  should  render  unto  Caesar  the  things  that 
are  Caesar's  and  unto  God  the  things  that  are  God's?" 

In  reply,  Catherine  quoted  several  other  texts  which 
entirely  demolished  the  interpretation  that  the  Evange- 
list had  put  upon  that  one.  Having  been  brought 
up  on  the  Bible,  she  ( was  fortified  with  a  great  array 
of  revolutionary  passages  of  Scripture.  To  every 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    65 

evil  which  could  be  traced  to  the  Czar,  she  applied  a 
quotation  from  Holy  Writ.  "How  can  God  have 
anointed  a  ruler  who  does  everything  that  God  con- 
demns? Does  God  encourage  misery  and  poverty 
among  his  children  on  earth?  Does  He  encourage 
oppression  and  murder?  Well,  but  that  is  just  what 
the  Czar  does  encourage  !" 

Whenever  Catherine  waxed  eloquent,  the  Evangelist 
would  meditate  for  a  while,  and  then  say  dreamily : 
"Who  knows?  Perhaps,  if  one  of  us  Evangelists 
could  come  into  the  Czar's  presence,  he  would  tell  the 
Czar  everything,  and  then  everything  would  change 
for  the  better.  The  trouble  is  that  he  is  always  sur- 
rounded by  unscrupulous  nobles  and  officials.  Ah,  if 
one  of  our  members  could  only  approach  him !" 

Catherine  told  the  Evangelist  that  her  nephew  was 
deeply  interested  in  these  subjects,  and  she  would 
bring  him  over  to  have  a  talk  about  them  if  Stephan 
would  arrange  to  have  some  other  Evangelists  present. 
To  this  he  gladly  agreed. 

Catherine  introduced  Stephanovitch  to  Stephan, 
and  they  argued  for  hours,  Stephanovitch  bringing 
forward  many  texts  to  prove  the  need  of  a  revolution. 
Then  Catherine  began  to  chat  with  the  Evangelist 
about  his  family.  He  told  her  he  had  been  married 
twice,  and  had  two  children  by  his  first  wife. 

"That  is  the  source  of  all  my  troubles,"  he  said. 
"  There  is  continual  quarreling  between  the  stepmother 
and  her  stepchildren." 

"What  do  you  do  about  it?" 

"Well,  what  would  you  expect?  The  world  has 
found  a  cure  for  such  cases,  hasn't  it?"  He  smiled 
—  not  a  pleasant  smile.  "Sometimes  I  have  to  give 


66    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

the  children  a  thrashing  to  keep  them  within  bounds, 
and  sometimes  my  wife  gets  it.  Then  things  quiet 
down,  all  right." 

Catherine  knew  that  most  peasants  beat  their  wives, 
but  in  the  case  of  a  deeply  religious  Evangelist  she 
had  hoped  to  find  a  higher  type  of  family  life. 

"What!"  she  exclaimed.  "A  man  of  your  intelli- 
gence do  such  an  unmanly  thing?  Would  it  not  be 
much  better  to  quiet  your  wife  and  children  by  talk- 
ing to  them?" 

Just  then  a  slender  young  peasant  woman  came  in, 
with  a  child  in  her  arms,  and  an  older  boy  and  girl 
hanging  to  her  dress.  There  was  a  weary,  melancholy 
look  in  her  deep  sunken  eyes.  Catherine  had  a  talk 
with  her,  while  Stephanovitch  engaged  the  husband 
in  another  discussion. 

"Sister,  my  heart  is  full  to  bursting,"  said  the  frail 
little  woman.  "When  we  come  together  to  pray, 
they  all  bow  their  heads  and  murmur  their  thoughts 
and  wishes  to  God,  but  my  heart  is  heavy  and  I  am 
dumb.  I  cannot  pray,  for  my  conscience  is  not  clear, 
and  I  feel  dreadful  misgivings.  In  the  Holy  Book 
it  says  that  we  should  all  love  one  another ;  but  what 
kind  of  love  have  we  here?  The  children  vex  and 
torment  me,  my  husband  beats  me,  and  I  am  ignored 
and  trampled  upon.  Nobody  ever  pays  the  slightest 
heed  to  my  wishes.  I  sometimes  feel  that  I  have  no 
place  here;  and  so  I  cannot  honestly  pray  to  thank 
God." 

The  poor  woman  wept  bitterly,  stifling  her  sobs  for 
fear  they  might  reach  her  husband's  ear.  Catherine 
could  hardly  keep  back  her  own  tears. 

The  meeting  at  the  Evangelist's  house  was  held  the 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    67 

next  night.  The  room  was  packed.  There  were 
many  men,  and  some  women  and  children.  None  of 
the  men  were  young.  Some  had  interesting  faces ; 
there  was  something  there  beside  the  careworn  wrinkles 
of  the  peasant;  there  was  a  faint  glow  of  enthusiasm 
in  their  eyes.  All  wore  their  holiday  garments  of  white 
linen  freshly  washed  and  pressed,  with  green  belts; 
and  the  women  had  on  brilliantly  dyed  shawls.  A 
kerosene  lamp  hung  from  the  ceiling.  They  sang 
psalms  and  hymns  with  a  German  rhythm.  The 
harmony  was  poor,  for  the  Russian  peasants  were  still 
unaccustomed  to  the  musical  genius  of  the  German 
Protestants  whose  religion  they  had  adopted;  but 
they  struggled  through  the  lines  heroically,  making 
up  in  enthusiasm  what  they  lacked  in  skill. 

Then  a  peasant  rose  and  prayed,  his  eyes  fixed  upon 
the  wall  in  the  left-hand  corner  of  the  room,  where 
the  sacred  images  and  pictures  are  found  in  the  houses 
of  peasants  belonging  to  the  Greek  Church.  Here 
they  had  been  replaced  by  a  strip  of  bright-colored  wall 
paper  and  several  flower  vases.  He  called  upon  God, 
asking  the  cause  of  man's  debasement,  and  how  this 
sinful  creature  could  ascend  into  the  light  of  heaven. 
Meanwhile  the  other  peasants  shook  their  heads  with 
rhythmic  piety,  their  lips  faintly  murmuring  tender 
supplications,  their  eyes  all  fixed  upon  the  many-colored 
wall  paper  in  the  left  corner.  Then  a  woman  arose. 
She  prayed  that  sin  might  be  swept  from  the  earth, 
and  that  Evangelism  might  come  into  its  own  in  every 
part  of  the  land.  She  mourned  over  the  frailty  of 
mankind,  with  her  eyes  fixed  on  the  spot  where  the 
picture  of  the  Madonna  used  to  hang;  and  the  eyes 
of  the  whole  assembly  gazed  in  the  same  direction. 


68    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

Then  Stephan  said:  "Brothers  and  sisters,  we  have 
here  two  guests  who  wish  to  become  familiar  with  our 
creed  and  our  manner  of  praying.  They  are  inclined 
towards  the  Evangelistic  faith,  but  they  are  still  un- 
certain upon  several  points,  and  they  want  to  inform 
themselves  by  asking  us  some  questions." 

Catherine  then  took  the  floor.  She  said:  "It  is 
written  in  the  Holy  Book  that  faith  without  works 
is  dead.  Where  there  is  true  religion,  there  must  be 
action.  If  so,  then,  when  the  Holy  Scriptures  tell  us 
to  help  the  downtrodden  and  oppressed,  we  must  do 
more  than  merely  repeat  the  words  after  them.  We 
must  practice  what  we  preach.  We  must  really  help 
those  who  are  suffering." 

"Well,  well,  that  is  certain,"  assented  several  peas- 
ants. « 

"But  I  know  of  many  villages  where  the  peasants 
are  on  the  verge  of  absolute  starvation  —  where  the 
old  people  never  eat  bread  and  the  babies  never  get 
milk.  They  need  not  only  religion,  but  food.  They 
are  so  hungry  that  they  cannot  even  think  about 
religion." 

She  went  on  to  describe  the  dire  poverty  she  had 
seen  in  other  districts  she  had  visited  —  places  where 
peasants  ate  the  bran  that  here  was  thrown  to  the 
cattle;  places  where  women  and  children  were  merci- 
lessly flogged  for  the  slightest  neglect  of  their  work. 
Her  pictures  were  so  vivid  and  gripping  that  the  women 
melted  into  tears,  and  the  men  bowed  their  heads  in 
sorrow.  One  short  peasant  with  fiery  red  hair  broke 
into  shouts ;  he  wanted  to  go  out  at  once  to  feed  the 
starving  people  from  the  bursting  granaries  of  the 
wealthy  nobles. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    69 

"And  why  have  we  all  this  suffering  around  us?" 
continued  Catherine.  "Because  the  peasants,  since 
their  emancipation  from  serfdom,  have  been  given 
no  land ;  because  they  have  been  ruthlessly  robbed  of 
all  their  possessions  and  of  all  their  rights,  not  only  in 
regard  to  religion,  but  in  all  social,  political,  and  eco- 
nomic matters." 

The  Evangelists  were  wholly  under  the  spell  of  Cath- 
erine's magnetic  personality.  They  shouted  approval, 
and  declared  they  would  avenge  the  wrongs  of  their 
brethren.  There  was  enthusiastic  confusion. 

Suddenly  the  door  opened.  On  the  threshold  stood 
a  remarkably  handsome  man.  His  face  was  domineer- 
ing, his  bearing  martial,  his  dress  almost  splendid. 
He  held  a  Bible  in  his  hand. 

"Ah!     Here  is  Brother  Peter!"  cried  the  peasants. 

Peter  was  the  right-hand  man  of  the  absent 
Ryobashapka.  He  had  received  a  hint  that  it  would 
be  well  for  him  to  attend  the  meeting,  as  the  Evange- 
lists would  need  a  man  who  could  hold  his  own  in  argu- 
ment. 

He  marched  with  a  self-confident  air  to  the  middle 
of  the  room,  took  a  good  look  at  the  two  strangers, 
and  sat  down  to  listen.  Stephanovitch  began  an 
address,  quoting  from  the  Scriptures,  but  was  inter- 
rupted by  Peter  with  the  text,  "Render  unto  Caesar 
the  things  that  are  Caesar's."  Stephanovitch  re- 
sponded with  such  a  shower  of  revolutionary  texts 
that  Peter  was  soon  confounded  and  put  to  silence. 
Then  Catherine  again  described  the  miserable  condi- 
tion of  the  peasants  in  different  parts  of  Russia.  She 
told  of  peasants  who  never  baked,  and  sometimes  were 
driven  to  eat  grass;  of  whole  villages  suffering  from  a 


70    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

contagious  eye-trouble,  because  the  people  lived  in 
burrows;  of  peasants  who  spent  the  whole  summer 
picking  crumbs  and  other  bits  of  food  out  of  the  barrels, 
and  lived  during  the  winter  on  what  they  had  been 
able  to  save  of  the  food  thus  collected.  They  were  as 
gaunt  as  skeletons,  yet  they  were  exploited,  and  taxed, 
and  forced  to  serve  in  the  army.  She  told  of  the  thou- 
sands and  thousands  who  wandered  from  place  to  place 
in  search  of  work,  destitute  and  starving,  till  they 
found  their  last  bed  in  a  ditch,  and  no  one  knew  when 
or  where  they  died ;  and  all  because  the  peasants  had 
been  deprived  of  the  land  that  was  rightfully  their  own. 

The  listeners  wept  and  groaned  in  heartfelt  sym- 
pathy. 

"Well,"  said  Catherine,  "can  you  know  of  all  this 
that  is  going  on  around  you,  and  not  care?" 

"No,  no  !  Never !"  cried  the  little  peasant  with  the 
red  hair. 

"We  must  do  something,"  exclaimed  others. 

Then  Catherine  and  Stephanovitch  explained  that 
there  was  a  great  revolutionary  organization,  with 
branches  all  over  Russia,  which  was  planning  to  win 
justice  for  the  wronged  and  bleeding  children  of  the 
soil.  The  revolutionists,  they  said,  were  also  preachers 
of  a  religion,  and  one  of  its  maxims  was,  "No  stone 
shall  be  left  unturned  until  life  in  this  world  is  started 
on  an  honest  basis."  "Brothers  and  sisters,"  said 
Catherine,  "will  you  join  us  in  this  movement  for  jus- 
tice and  equality  ?  " 

The  peasants  hesitated.  Then  they  answered,  "We 
are  all  in  full  sympathy  with  you,  but  we  cannot  de- 
cide upon  anything  till  our  eldest  brother,  Ryoba- 
shapka,  is  here  to  advise  us." 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    71 

"And  have  you  no  wills  of  your  own  —  no  minds 
of  your  own  ?  "  said  Catherine. 

"It  is  wiser  to  wait  for  him,"  they  insisted.  "He 
attends  to  all  our  affairs,  and  he  once  traveled  all  the 
way  to  St.  Petersburg  in  our  cause." 

The  peasants  parted  with  the  revolutionists  in  a 
very  friendly  spirit.  Peter  tried  to  slip  away  un- 
noticed, but  Catherine  insisted  upon  shaking  hands 
with  him.  The  audience  left  one  by  one,  so  as  not 
to  attract  attention.  Then  Stephan  took  Catherine 
and  her  nephew  into  his  back  yard,  silenced  his 
dog  with  a  kick,  and  helped  them  over  the  fence,  so 
that  no  one  might  know  they  had  been  visiting  the 
heretics. 

The  next  morning  their  host  asked  them  if  they  had 
yet  met  his  neighbor  Stephan.  Catherine  said  that 
they  had,  and  that  he  seemed  to  be  a  fairly  good  sort 
of  peasant,  only  that  his  religion  was  not  quite  what 
it  ought  to  be.  She  and  Stephanovitch  spent  the  day 
studying  the  Scriptures,  in  preparation  for  the  evening 
meeting.  They  drew  their  ammunition  especially  from 
the  Epistles. 

In  the  evening  a  still  larger  gathering  of  Evangelists 
met  in  Stephan's  house.  Peter  was  there,  Bible  in 
hand,  ready  to  renew  the  fight.  He  held  out  somewhat 
longer  than  before,  but  he  was  finally  discomfited, 
and  took  shelter  behind  the  little  red-headed  man, 
who  was  absorbed  in  admiration  of  Catherine. 

Stephanovitch  spoke  about  the  early  trials  of  the 
Apostles,  telling  how  they  had  opposed  autocratic 
rulers,  and  had  refused  to  recognize  the  divine  right 
of  kings,  or  the  sacredness  of  their  laws  and  edicts. 
The  peasants  waxed  still  more  enthusiastic,  and  were 


72    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

all  ready  to  join  the  revolutionary  movement,  if  only 
Ryobashapka  approved.  Catherine  had  misgivings 
about  their  blind  trust  in  this  "elder  brother."  She 
feared  also  that  Ryobashapka  would  be  influenced 
against  her  and  Stephanovitch  in  advance,  by  Brother 
Peter,  whose  pride  had  been  wounded  by  his  defeat 
in  argument. 

The  next  evening  they  found  the  peasants  restless 
and  full  of  expectation.  "To-day  we  shall  come  to  a 
decision,"  said  Stephan.  "Our  oldest  and  wisest 
brother  has  just  got  back.  He  will  soon  be  here." 
The  peasants  kept  stealing  glances  at  the  door.  At 
last  it  opened,  to  admit  a  powerful,  broad-shouldered 
giant,  ruddy  and  well  fed,  with  a  high  forehead  and 
piercing  eyes.  He  gazed  at  the  two  visitors  in  silence 
for  a  few  moments,  then  marched  through  the  crowd 
straight  up  to  them,  and  thundered,  "Where  do  you 
come  from  ?  " 
"FromOrlov." 

"Why  are  you  wandering  about?     Why  don't  you 
settle  down  somewhere?" 

"We  have  no  land.  We  are  looking  for  work." 
"  Where  are  your  passports  ?  Have  you  passports  ?  " 
Catherine  and  Stephanovitch  rose,  and  began  slowly 
to  pull  out  their  passports,  but  the  look  of  mingled 
scorn  and  pity  that  Catherine  cast  upon  the  arrogant 
carpenter  made  him  blush  to  his  ears.  It  was  the 
business  of  the  government  alone  to  demand  passports ; 
and  it  did  not  become  an  Evangelist  to  help  the  perse- 
cuting government  in  making  its  inquisitions.  But 
Ryobashapka  represented  that  he  only  wanted  to  make 
sure  they  were  not  tramps.  God  knew  who  might  be 
prowling  about  among  respectable  people ! 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    73 

"Well,  now,  why  do  you  come  to  us?"  he  asked, 
after  looking  at  the  passports. 

"We  are  truth-seekers,"  they  answered,  "and  we 
heard  that  you  people  here  have  discovered  and  up- 
hold the  true  faith." 

"Well,  that  wouldn't  be  so  bad;  but  I  understand 
that  you  are  agitating  for  a  rebellion  against  the  Czar." 

"We  simply  believe  that  the  oppressed  should  defend 
themselves  against  their  oppressors." 

Ryobashapka  defended  obedience  to  the  Czar  from 
the  gospels.  His  arguments  were  soon  demolished, 
but  this  only  made  him  more  bitter.  "If  I  did  not 
understand  the  teachings  of  my  religion  and  practice 
them,"  he  said,  "I  should  turn  you  over  to  the  police 
this  minute." 

"There  would  be  nothing  new  in  that,"  answered 
Catherine,  with  a  shade  of  mockery  in  her  tone.  "  The 
Czar  has  plenty  of  spies  and  informers." 

Confusion  followed.  Many  of  the  Evangelists  were 
displeased  with  Ryobashapka's  roughness. 

"Why  bully  them  so?"  they  said.  "They  mean 
well.  They  are  seekers  after  the  truth." 

"They  have  the  people's  welfare  at  heart,"  said  the 
little  man  with  the  red  head. 

"What  is  all  this  excitement  about?"  asked  the  car- 
penter, frowning.  "I  said  I  had  a  right  to  turn  them 
over  to  the  police,  but  that,  being  an  honest  Evangelist, 
I  shall  not  avail  myself  of  the  right.  There  is  nothing 
harsh  about  that." 

This  calmed  the  disturbance.  The  two  revolution- 
ists then  reminded  the  peasants  that  the  government 
did  not  permit  a  true  interpretation  of  the  Bible,  and 
that  the  people  suffered  severely  in  consequence. 


74    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"Here  you  are,"  they  said,  "trying  to  live  according 
to  your  own  convictions,  and  you  are  continually 
molested  and  persecuted."  Catherine  described  the 
sufferings  of  others  who  tried  to  live  according  to  their 
ideals,  and  how  they  were  all  arrested,  or  flogged,  or 
sent  to  Siberia.  "Do  you  think  a  Czar  who  permits 
such  things  is  pleasing  to  God?"  she  said. 

"What  are  you  driving  at?"  cried  Ryobashapka. 
"Do  you  mean  to  tell  me  that  if  the  officials  will  not 
permit  an  honest  interpretation  of  the  Bible,  they  will 
permit  rebellion  and  an  honest  form  of  government  ? 
Perhaps,  if  you  went  to  prison  for  a  year  or  two,  as 
I  have  done,  you  would  learn  a  thing  or  two.  I  know 
what  I  have  gone  through  to  get  our  right  of  free  wor- 
ship for  this  congregation,  and  I  don't  fancy  the  idea 
of  going  through  it  again.  We  have  been  flogged  and 
persecuted,  we  have  been  thrown  into  prison  and  had 
our  property  confiscated  and  our  rights  taken  away, 
over  and  over  again;  and  now,  when  our  burden  has 
grown  somewhat  lighter,  and  we  are  about  to  be  able 
to  enjoy  our  newly  won  liberties  in  peace,  I  certainly 
don't  see  why  we  should  join  in  a  most  desperate  under- 
taking, which  will  ruin  everything  for  us.  We  have 
had  enough  of  persecution.  We  have  no  particular 
fancy  for  Siberia,  or  the  fortress  of  St.  Peter  and  St. 
Paul." 

He  made  a  long  and  telling  speech,  and  carried  all 
the  peasants  with  him.  The  two  revolutionists  re- 
tired, completely  routed. 

They  would  not  leave  town  at  once,  for  that  would 
have  seemed  like  flight.  They  stayed  long  enough 
to  allay  suspicion.  When  Catherine  went  to  bid  Ste- 
phan  good-by,  he  said,  in  a  voice  of  deep  emotion ; 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    75 

"I  cannot  express  what  I  feel,  but  I  know  that  the 
first  time  I  set  eyes  upon  you,  when  you  came  over  the 
fence  into  my  yard,  something  was  lighted  up  in  my 
heart.  When  I  heard  you  attack  the  Czar  and  his 
degenerate  court,  I  wondered,  thinking,  'Perhaps  this 
woman  is  the  Czar's  own  daughter,  for  is  it  not  written 
somewhere  that  "the  doom  of  the  house  of  kings  shall 
be  sounded  by  one  of  their  own  household"?" 

Stephan  invited  her  to  come  to  his  house  that  night 
with  her  "nephew."  He  treated  them  with  every 
mark  of  consideration,  and  when  they  started  to  leave 
the  town,  he  sent  his  little  daughter  to  show  them  the 
way,  so  that  they  might  not  have  to  inquire  of  strangers. 
The  barefooted  child  ran  ahead  of  them  through  the 
darkness,  leading  them  through  winding  paths  to  a 
hill  on  the  outskirts  of  the  town.  There  she  pointed 
out  the  road,  made  them  a  pretty  curtsy,  and  vanished 
like  a  little  fairy  of  the  night. 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  two  "flame-seekers"  next  went  to  Zlatopol. 
They  found  in  the  market  place  many  Roumanian 
women,  with  heads  so  wrapped  up  that  only  their 
eyes  could  be  seen.  Just  as  they  arrived,  a  policeman 
snatched  a  paper  ruble  from  one  woman's  hand,  and 
made  off  with  it.  The  woman  screamed,  and  Stephano- 
vitch,  who  always  fired  up  at  the  sight  of  injustice, 
started  after  the  policeman.  Catherine  hung  on  to 
his  coat  with  all  her  might. 

"You  child!"  she  said.  "Do  you  want  to  ruin 
everything  by  starting  a  riot  here?" 

In  Zlatopol  she  had  a  large  supply  of  revolu- 
tionary literature  printed,  and  spent  some  time  dis- 
tributing her  pamphlets  and  holding  meetings  among 
the  peasants.  Then  she  traveled  on,  going  from 
village  to  village. 

"I  did  my  organizing  by  night,"  she  said,  in  telling 
of  her  experiences.  "You  desire  a  picture?  A  low 
room  with  mud  floor  and  walls.  Rafters  just  over 
your  head,  and  still  higher,  thatch.  The  room  was 
packed  with  men,  women,  and  children.  Two  big 
fellows  sat  up  on  the  high  brick  stove,  with  their 
dangling  feet  knocking  occasional  applause.  These 
people  had  been  gathered  by  my  host,  a  brave  peasant 
whom  I  had  picked  out,  and  he  in  turn  had  chosen 

76 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    77 

only  those  whom  Siberia  could  not  terrify.  I  reminded 
them  of  their  floggings;  I  pointed  to  those  who  were 
crippled  for  life;  to  women  whose  husbands  had  died 
under  the  lash;  and  when  I  asked  if  men  were  to  be 
forever  flogged,  they  would  cry  out  so  fiercely  that 
the  three  or  four  cattle  in  the  next  room  would  bellow 
and  have  to  be  quieted.  Again  I  would  ask  what 
chance  their  babies  had  of  living,  and  in  reply  some 
peasant  woman  would  tell  how  her  baby  had  died 
the  winter  before.  Why?  I  asked.  Because  they 
had  only  the  most  wretched  bits  of  land.  To  be  free 
and  live,  the  people  must  own  the  land !  From  my 
cloak  I  would  bring  a  book  of  fables  written  to  teach 
our  principles  and  stir  the  love  of  freedom.  And  then, 
far  into  the  night,  the  firelight  showed  a  circle  of  great, 
broad  faces  and  dilated  eyes,  staring  with  all  the 
reverence  every  peasant  has  for  that  mysterious  thing 
—  a  book. 

"These  books,  twice  as  effective  as  oral  work,  were 
printed  in  secrecy  at  heavy  expense.  But  many 
of  us  had  libraries,  jewels,  costly  gowns  and  furs  to 
sell;  and  new  recruits  kept  adding  to  our  fund.  We 
had  no  personal  expenses. 

"Often,  betrayed  by  some  spy,  I  left  a  village 
quickly,  before  completing  my  work.  Then  the  hut 
group  was  left  to  meet  under  a  peasant  who  could 
read  aloud  those  wonderful  fables.  So  they  dreamed, 
until  a  few  weeks  later  another  leader  in  disguise  came 
to  them. 

"In  that  year  of  1874,  over  two  thousand  educated 
men  and  women  traveled  among  the  peasants.  Weary 
work,  you  say.  Yes,  when  the  peasants  were  slow 
and  dull,  and  the  spirit  of  freedom  seemed  an  illusion. 


78    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

But  when  that  spirit  grew  real,  one  felt  far  from  weary. 
Then,  too,  we  had  occasional  grippings  of  hands  with 
comrades.  We  could  always  encourage  each  other, 
for  all  had  found  the  peasants  receptive  to  our  doc- 
trine. To  own  the  land  had  been  the  dream  of  their 
fathers.  Their  eagerness  rose;  and  stout  words  of 
cheer  were  sent  from  one  group  to  another.  An  under- 
ground system  was  started,  a  correspondence  cipher 
was  invented,  the  movement  spread  through  thirty- 
six  great  provinces  of  Russia  and  became  steadily 
better  organized.  So  the  People's  Party  was  es- 
tablished." 

In  September,  Catherine  and  Stephanovitch  were 
working  near  Tulchin,  in  Podolia.  They  had  chosen 
this  region  because  here  the  peasants  had  often  banded 
themselves  together  against  the  Polish  nobility. 

In  Tulchin  they  saw  an  old  deserted  palace  in  a 
great  park.  In  the  heart  of  the  town  they  noticed  a 
strange,  gloomy  building,  surrounded  by  a  high  stone 
wall.  Catherine  wondered  what  it  was.  She  was 
soon  to  learn. 

They  took  up  their  quarters,  as  usual,  with  a  peasant. 
He  inspected  their  passports,  and  stowed  them  for 
safety  in  his  great  wooden  chest.  Beside  it  stood 
their  packs.  These  were  full  of  revolutionary  litera- 
ture, but  they  had  no  fear  that  any  one  would  pry 
into  them.  It  was  an  unwritten  law  that  no  peasant 
should  ever  meddle  with  another  peasant's  pack. 
Unfortunately,  just  the  opposite  rule  prevailed  as  to 
letters.  The  arrival  of  a  letter  in  a  little  town  was  a 
rare  event,  exciting  general  interest  and  awe.  If  one 
peasant  received  any  mail,  the  other  peasants  expected 
to  know  all  about  it,  as  a  matter  of  course. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    79 

Their  host  had  taken  the  two  travelers  into  his  own 
hut  until  the  little  cabin  beside  it,  which  was  partly 
filled  with  grain,  could  be  cleared  out  and  made  ready 
for  them.  As  his  wife  was  ill,  he  had  a  servant  girl. 
After  a  time  Stephanovitch  went  to  Kiev  on  business, 
leaving  his  pack  in  Catherine's  care.  She  used  to  go 
every  morning  to  the  market  to  buy  food.  Coming 
home  one  day,  with  her  modest  purchase  of  two  apples 
and  a  bit  of  pork,  she  passed  the  dilapidated  palace, 
and  was  just  thinking  that  some  day  the  lofty  throne 
of  Russia  might  in  like  manner  be  given  over  to  the 
worms,  when  she  heard  the  rattling  of  a  carriage 
coming  rapidly  along  the  road  behind  her.  Turning, 
she  saw  that  its  occupant  was  a  stout  police  officer. 

"Halt!"  he  called  to  her  roughly. 

For  a  moment  the  world  turned  black  before  her 
eyes.  Then  she  was  herself  again. 

"Come  here!"  he  cried  sharply.  "Where  do  you 
come  from?" 

"From  the  province  of  Orlov." 

"Where  is  your  passport?" 

"At  my  lodging." 

"Well,  get  in  with  the  driver.  We'll  soon  see  the 
passport,  if  you  have  one." 

The  carriage  started  off,  in  a  cloud  of  dust.  Cather- 
ine was  surprised  to  see  that  they  drove  straight  to 
her  lodging  place,  without  asking  where  it  was.  Then 
she  knew  that  there  had  been  a  discovery. 

It  was  a  hot  day,  and  the  windows  of  the  hut  had 
been  taken  out,  to  let  in  more  air.  The  servant  girl 
was  standing  at  one  side,  near  the  stump  of  an  old 
tree.  She  was  deadly  pale,  and  her  face  looked  be- 
wildered —  almost  idiotic.  Catherine  saw  that  she 


80    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

had  been  responsible  for  the  misfortune.  The  simple 
girl  had  found  that  Catherine's  pack  contained  papers 
and  a  map,  and  had  told  the  wonderful  news  to  her 
friends.  It  had  passed  from  one  to  another  till  it 
reached  the  ears  of  the  police. 

"Passports!"  growled  the  policeman. 

The  driver  ran  into  the  hut  and  brought  out  Cather- 
ine's host. 

"Passports!"  shouted  the  policeman  again.  The 
host  ran  in,  and  came  out,  waving  Catherine's  passport 
wildly  in  the  air. 

The  officer  began  to  question  Catherine,  and  tried 
to  take  her  by  the  chin,  as  superiors  do  to  peasants. 
She  resented  the  familiarity,  and  thus  betrayed  that 
she  was  no  peasant.  A  wicked  flash  shot  from  his 
eyes. 

"Where  are  her  things?"  he  shouted,  turning  to  the 
trembling  host.  The  man  thought  his  lodger  was 
accused  of  theft.  As  he  had  seen  nothing  new  in  her 
wardrobe,  he  answered,  "Your  honor,  she  has  no 
things." 

"  No  things  !     What  are  those  ?  " 

He  pointed  to  the  heavy  packs  in  the  corner. 

"Oh,  those  are  her  own  things." 

"Well,  those  are  just  what  I  want.  Bring  them 
here." 

The  packs  were  dragged  into  the  middle  of  the  room 
and  opened.  "Ha !"  cried  the  police  agent  exultantly, 
as  he  pulled  out  a  handful  of  revolutionary  pamphlets. 
"So,  you  can  read  and  write?"  he  said  tauntingly  to 
Catherine;  but  he  had  dropped  the  familiar  "thou" 
and  addressed  her  as  "you."  She  made  no  answer. 
She  had  seated  herself  on  the  large  wooden  chest,  and 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    81 

was  eating  her  two  apples  with  perfect  coolness.  She 
felt  like  an  unconcerned  spectator  looking  on  at  a  play. 

The  officer  was  beside  himself  with  excitement  and 
joy.  He  seldom  had  to  do  with  any  case  more  im- 
portant than  tracing  a  runaway  hog  or  a  few  stolen 
chickens.  It  was  a  great  triumph  to  have  caught 
a  revolutionist.  Meanwhile  a  crowd  had  gathered. 
Outside  the  windows,  in  the  yard  and  in  the  room, 
men,  women,  and  children  stood  looking  and  listening 
eagerly,  full  of  curiosity  and  fear. 

His  eyes  almost  starting  out  of  his  head  with  ex- 
citement, the  police  officer  began  to  read  the  manifesto 
of  the  revolutionists  aloud  to  the  crowd,  with  violent 
intonations  and  more  violent  gestures.  Whenever  a 
passage  excited  his  particular  wrath,  he  would  swell 
his  voice.  Then  he  sent  for  the  District  Attorney,  and 
the  District  Attorney  read  the  incendiary  document 
aloud  all  over  again.  The  priest  was  summoned,  and  he 
too  read  it  aloud.  The  officer  sent  for  the  judge  and 
the  chief  of  police.  Meanwhile  the  peasants  had 
been  listening  to  the  manifesto  with  very  different 
feelings  from  those  of  the  officials.  As  that  simple 
but  stirring  proclamation  of  freedom,  equality,  and 
love  was  read,  they  supposed  in  their  ignorance  that 
it  was  the  lost  "original  pages",  the  much-longed-for 
proclamation  from  the  Czar.  The  good  news  spread, 
and  the  crowd  grew  larger  and  larger.  Then  suddenly 
the  chief  of  police  arrived,  glanced  at  the  wild,  joyous 
faces  around,  and  seized  the  document. 

"What  is  this?"  he  asked  Catherine  roughly. 

"Propaganda,"  she  replied,  "with  which  the  District 
Attorney  and  the  gendarme  have  been  very  viciously 
inciting  the  people." 


82       LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"Search  her,"  said  the  chief  of  police. 

Some  peasant  women  took  Catherine  into  the  little 
cabin  and  locked  the  door.  But  they  refused  to 
search  her.  They  wept,  and  admired  her  calmness. 
She  had  nothing  about  her  but  two  rubles,  a  blank 
envelope,  and  a  few  burnt  matches. 

She  was  taken  under  guard  to  the  sinister  looking 
building  about  which  she  had  wondered,  and  was 
led  down  into  the  Black  Hole. 

"As  I  went  down,"  she  says,  "two  besotted  wretches 
were  stumbling  up.  I  was  pushed  in,  the  heavy  door 
slammed,  and  bolts  rattled  in  total  darkness.  I  took 
a  step  forward,  and  slipped,  for  the  floor  was  soft 
with  excrement.  I  stood  still  until,  deadly  sick,  I 
sank  down  on  a  pile  of  straw  and  rags.  A  minute 
later  I  was  stung  sharply  back  to  consciousness,  and 
sprang  up  covered  with  vermin.  I  leaned  against  the 
walls  and  found  them  wet.  So  I  stood  up  all  night 
in  the  middle  of  the  hole.  And  this  was  the  beginning 
of  Siberia." 

Her  first  anxiety  was  to  send  a  warning  to  Stephano- 
vitch.  Otherwise  he  would  be  arrested  as  soon  as 
he  came  back.  In  Kiev  there  was  a  woman  in  the 
highest  circles  of  the  nobility  who  was  a  revolutionist. 
She  had  told  her  colleagues  who  were  scattered  over 
the  country  that  in  case  of  danger  they  might  send 
important  communications  to  her,  and  she  would 
pass  them  on.  With  her  burnt  matches  Catherine 
wrote  in  the  blank  envelope,  "Aunt  has  fallen  ill", 
and  addressed  it  to  the  lady  in  Kiev. 

When  Catherine  had  been  put  in  prison,  twelve 
sentinels,  armed  to  the  teeth,  had  been  stationed 
around  the  walls.  Through  the  barred  window  she 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION       83 

called  to  one  of  them,  and  gave  him  her  last  two  rubles 
to  send  the  message  to  its  address.  He  took  it  to  the 
chief  of  police.  The  local  police  authorities  decided 
to  send  the  message,  at  the  same  time  notifying  the 
police  in  Kiev,  so  that  they  might  shadow  everybody 
concerned,  and  track  the  conspirators  to  their  lair. 
The  telegram  was  sent,  and  a  messenger  boy  brought 
it  to  the  court  lady.  She  read  it  and  reread  it,  with  a 
puzzled  face.  Then  she  handed  it  back,  saying,  "Why 
have  you  brought  this  message  here?  There  must  be 
some  mistake.  It  is  not  for  me.  My  aunt  is  staying 
with  me  at  present."  The  boy  took  back  the  message, 
and  the  sleuth  who  had  been  a  concealed  witness  re- 
turned to  police  headquarters  perplexed.  They  did 
not  know  what  to  think ;  and,  as  the  lady  was  of  high 
rank  and  very  rich,  they  did  nothing  further  in  the 
matter.  She  passed  the  message  on  to  all  the  revolu- 
tionists of  her  acquaintance,  and  within  twenty-four 
hours  it  reached  Stephanovitch. 

Catherine  was  held  in  prison  in  Petrograd  for  a 
long  time,  awaiting  trial.  She  says  : 

"My  cell  was  nine  feet  long,  five  feet  wide,  and  seven 
feet  high.  It  was  clean,  and  a  hole  above  gave  plenty 
of  air.  My  bed  was  an  iron  bracket  with  mattress 
and  pillow  of  straw,  rough  gray  blanket,  coarse  sheet 
and  pillow  case.  I  wore  my  own  clothes.  This  cell 
I  never  left  for  over  two  years. 

"  In  solitary  confinement  ?  No.  I  joined  a  social 
club. 

"On  that  first  evening  I  lay  in  the  dark,  telling  my- 
self that  our  struggle  must  go  on  in  spite  of  this  calam- 
ity, and  yet  fearful  for  it,  as  we  fear  for  things  we  love. 
I  lay  motionless,  and  solitary  confinement  began  to 


84       LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

work  on  my  mind,  as  the  System  had  planned  it 
should.  Suddenly  I  sat  up  quickly.  I  could  hear 
nothing;  but  as  I  started  to  lie  down,  my  ear  again 
approached  the  iron  pipe  supporting  my  cot.  Tick, 
tick,  tickity,  tick,  tick.  I  felt  along  the  pipe,  and 
found  that  it  went  through  to  the  next  cell.  Again 
I  heard :  Tick,  tick,  tick,  tickity,  tick.  I  had  once 
heard  a  code  planned  at  a  meeting  in  Moscow,  but  I 
could  not  recall  it.  At  last  I  had  an  idea.  There 
are  thirty-five  letters  in  the  Russian  alphabet.  I 
rapped.  Once !  Then  twice !  Then  three  times  !  So 
on  until  for  the  last  letter  I  rapped  thirty-five.  No 
response.  Again,  slowly  and  distinctly.  My  heart 
was  beating  now.  Steps  came  slowly  down  the  cor- 
ridor. The  guard  approached  and  passed  my  door. 
His  steps  died  away.  Suddenly  --  Tick !  —  Tick,  tick  ! 
-  Tick,  tick,  tick !  —  and  through  to  thirty-five. 
Then  slowly  we  spelled  out  words,  and  by  this  clumsy 
code  the  swifter  code  was  taught  me.  After  that  for 
three  years  the  pipe  was  almost  always  talking.  How 
fast  we  talked  !  The  pipe  sounded  like  this." 

Her  gray  head  bent  over  the  table,  her  face  was 
flushed,  her  eyes  flashed  back  through  forty  years  of 
danger  and  prison,  and  her  strong,  supple  fingers 
rolled  out  the  ticks  at  lightning  speed. 

"Our  club  had  over  a  hundred  members  in  solitary 
confinement;  some  in  cells  on  either  side  of  mine, 
some  below  and  some  above.  Did  we  tell  stories? 
Yes,  and  good  ones !  Young  students  —  keen  wits 
—  high  spirits!"  She  laughed  merrily.  "How  some 
of  those  youngsters  made  love!  A  mere  boy,  two 
cells  to  my  right,  vowed  he  adored  the  young  girl  of 
nineteen,  five  cells  to  my  left  on  the  floor  above, 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION      85 

whom  he  had  never  set  eyes  on.  I  helped  tick  his 
gallant  speeches  and  her  responses  continually  along. 
They  passed  to  the  cell  below  hers,  and  were  ticked 
up  the  heating  pipe  to  her  by  a  sad  little  woman  who 
was  grieving  for  her  babies.  Did  they  ever  meet  ? 
Ah,  Siberia  is  as  large  as  the  United  States  and  France 
and  England  and  Germany  all  together. 

"Our  club  was  not  wholly  a  club  of  pleasure.  Some 
of  the  members  died  of  consumption ;  others  killed 
themselves,  and  others  went  insane.  Sometimes  the 
pipe  raved.  It  spoke  many  sad  good-byes  to  wives 
and  children.  But  the  pipe  was  not  often  so,  for  a 
revolutionist  must  smile  though  the  heart  be  torn. 
We  older  ones  continually  urged  the  young  girls  to 
be  strong,  for  they  told  us  how  they  were  taken  out 
and  brutally  treated  to  make  them  give  evidence.  A 
very  few  broke  down,  but  there  were  many  young 
girls  who  endured,  unshaken,  months  of  this  brutality. 

"From  new  prisoners  we  heard  cheering  news.  The 
fire  of  our  Idea  had  spread  among  workmen  as  well  as 
peasants;  in  the  factories  many  were  arrested;  some 
were  imprisoned  here,  and  joined  our  club  for  a  time; 
but  they  were  soon  condemned  into  exile.  Still  the 
Idea  spread.  In  1877  came  that  tremendous  demon- 
stration on  the  Kazan  Square  in  St.  Petersburg. 
Hundreds  were  imprisoned;  again  many  joined  our 
club  and  were  condemned,  sent  us  last  words  of  cheer 
along  the  pipe,  and  so  were  rushed  off  to  Siberia. 

"In  1878  we  were  tried.  Out  of  the  three  hundred 
imprisoned  more  than  one  hundred  had  died  or  gone 
insane.  We  one  hundred  and  ninety-three  survivors 
were  packed  into  a  little  hall.  Over  half  had  belonged 
to  our  club,  and  I  had  a  strange  shock  as  I  now  looked 


86      LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

at  these  clubmates  with  whom  I  had  talked  every  day. 
They  were  white,  thin,  and  crippled,  but  still  the  same 
stout  hearts.  We  nerved  each  other  to  refuse  to  be 
tried,  for  the  trial  we  knew  was  to  be  a  farce,  with  a 
special  jury  of  only  seven,  of  whom  but  one  was  a 
peasant,  and  with  judges  appointed  by  the  Czar.  They 
divided  us  into  groups  of  ten  or  fifteen.  The  trials 
lasted  half  a  year.  When  my  turn  came,  I  protested 
against  the  farce.  I  said  to  the  judges:  *I  have  the 
honor  to  belong  to  the  Russian  socialistic  and  revolu- 
tionary party,  and  consequently  do  not  recognize  the 
authority  of  the  Czar's  courts  over  me.'  For  this  I 
was  at  once  taken  out  and  my  prison  term  was  length- 
ened to  five  years  as  a  hard  labor  convict  in  the  mines. 
This  is  the  punishment  given  to  a  murderer.  I  was 
the  first  woman  to  be  sentenced  to  the  mines  as  a 
political  offender.  My  term  served,  I  was  to  be  an 
exile  in  Siberia  for  some  years  longer. 

"Secretly,  at  night,  to  avoid  a  demonstration,  ten 
of  us  were  led  out.  Other  tens  followed  on  successive 
nights.  In  the  street  below  were  eleven  '  telegas '  — 
heavy  hooded  vehicles  with  three  horses  each.  In 
one  I  was  placed,  with  a  stout  gendarme  squeezed  in 
on  each  side,  to  remain  there  for  two  months.  Just 
in  front  of  my  knees  sat  the  driver.  We  went  off  at  a 
gallop,  and  our  5000-mile  journey  began. 

"The  Great  Siberian  Road  has  been  feelingly  de- 
scribed by  Mr.  Kennan.  A  succession  of  bumps  of 
all  sizes.  Our  springless  telegas  jolted  and  bounced ; 
my  two  big  gendarmes  lurched ;  our  horses  galloped 
continually,  for  they  were  changed  every  few  hours. 
Often  we  bounced  for  a  whole  week  without  stopping 
over  ten  minutes  day  or  night.  We  suffered  that 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION       87 

peculiar  agony  that  comes  from  long  lack  of  sleep. 
Our  officer  ordered  the  gendarmes  never  to  leave  us. 
At  times  we  women  held  shawls  between  the  gendarmes 
and  our  friends.  Three  wives  who  had  come  to  share 
their  husbands'  exile  were  treated  in  the  same  way. 
We  were  all  dressed  in  convict  clothes.  The  men  had 
also  heavy  chains  on  feet  and  wrists.  Their  heads 
were  partly  shaved.  Our  officer  kept  the  money 
given  him  by  our  anxious  friends  at  home,  and  gave 
us  each  the  government  allowance  of  four  and  one- 
half  cents  a  day. 

"For  sleep,  we  were  placed  in  the  etapes  (wayside 
prisons).  Mr.  Kennan  has  well  described  the  cells 
—  reeking,  crawling,  infected  with  scurvy,  consump- 
tion, and  typhoid.  They  had  log  walls  roughly  covered 
with  plaster,  often  red  with  vermin  killed  by  tormented 
sleepers.  The  air  was  invariably  noisome  from  the 
open  excrement  tubs.  The  long  bench  on  which  we 
slept  had  no  bedclothes.  Through  the  walls  we  heard 
the  endless  jangling  of  fetters,  the  moaning  of  women, 
the  cries  of  sick  babies.  On  the  walls  were  a  mass  of 
inscriptions,  names  of  friends  who  had  gone  before 
us,  news  of  death  and  insanity,  and  shrewd  bits  of 
advice  for  outwitting  the  gendarmes.  Some  were 
freshly  cut,  but  one  worm-eaten  love  poem  looked  a 
century  old.  For  along  this  Great  Siberian  Road 
over  a  million  men,  women,  and  children  have  dragged, 
250,000  since  1875,*  people  from  every  social  class; 
murderers  and  degenerates  side  by  side  with  tender 
girls  who  were  exiled  through  the  jealous  wife  of  some 
petty  town  official. 

"This  was  spoken  in  1904.  The  numbers  have  increased  enormously 
since  then. 


88      LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"You  keep  asking  me  for  scenes  and  stories.  But 
you  see  we  were  thinking  of  our  Dream,  and  did  not 
notice  so  much  the  life  outside.  Did  any  die?  Yes, 
one  by  typhoid.  Our  officer  rushed  the  sufferer  on 
at  full  gallop,  until  his  delirious  cries  from  the  jolt- 
ing vehicle  so  roused  our  protests  that  he  was  left 
in  the  Irkutsk  prison,  where  he  died.  Were  there  any 
children?  Yes,  one  little  wife  had  a  baby  ten  months 
old,  but  the  rest  of  us  did  all  we  could  to  help  her, 
and  the  child  survived  the  journey.  Friends  to  say 
good-bye  ?  Ah,  let  me  think.  Yes  —  as  we  passed 
through  Krasnoyarsk  a  student's  old  mother  had 
come  from  a  distance  to  see  him.  Our  officer  refused 
to  allow  the  boy  to  kiss  her.  She  caught  but  a  glimpse, 
the  gendarmes  jerked  him  back  into  the  vehicle  and 
they  galloped  on.  As  I  came  by  I  saw  her  white, 
haggard  old  face.  Then  she  fell  beside  the  road.'* 


CHAPTER  VII 

ON  reaching  the  mines  of  Kara,  she  found  that 
the  prison  year  was  only  eight  months,  and  that  the 
forty  months  she  had  spent  in  prison  would  be  deducted 
from  her  sentence.  She  found,  also,  that  the  political 
convicts  were  not  required  to  take  part  in  the  actual 
hard  labor  of  the  mines.  Their  punishment,  which 
to  some  of  them  seemed  even  worse,  was  that  of  en- 
forced idleness.  After  staying  ten  months,  she  left 
Kara,  as  she  then  hoped,  forever. 

She  was  taken  to  Barguzin,  a  bleak  little  group  of 
huts  near  the  Arctic  Circle.  In  an  address  given 
while  in  America,  she  told  some  incidents  of  the  journey. 
She  said : 

"Picture  to  yourselves,  on  a  cold  day  in  autumn, 
with  the  ground  frozen  and  the  wind  blowing  hard 
enough  to  take  your  breath  away,  a  long  procession 
of  hundreds  of  prisoners,  traveling  on  foot  across  the 
steppes  beyond  Lake  Baikal.  They  were  a  band  of 
convicts  who  had  served  out  their  terms  in  the  mines 
of  Kara,  and  were  on  their  way  to  the  places  where 
they  were  condemned  to  live  in  exile. 

"I  was  one  of  those  prisoners.  I  was  on  foot  like 
the  rest.  I  always  walked  ahead  of  the  column,  fol- 
lowed by  several  soldiers  of  our  guard.  The  women 
who  were  ill  and  the  children  were  crying  and  lament- 

89 


90      LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

ing  in  the  wretched  carts  that  dragged  them  along  at 
a  foot's  pace,  jolting  them  and  throwing  them  about. 
Every  one  was  shivering  with  cold;  nobody  spoke; 
and  the  silence  of  the  desert  was  broken  only  by  the 
blasts  of  the  wind. 

"Then  on  the  horizon  we  saw  a  black  speck,  which 
grew  gradually  larger  and  darker.  After  half  an  hour 
we  could  make  out  a  crowd  of  men,  hardly  able  to 
drag  one  foot  after  the  other,  staggering,  thin,  with 
livid  faces,  barefooted,  and  in  rags.  Among  them 
there  were  no  songs,  no  words,  no  sound  but  the  rat- 
tling of  their  chains,  which  echoed  like  mournful 
bells  in  the  cold  air  of  the  desert.  The  soldiers  escort- 
ing this  immense  mass  of  people  prodded  on  with  the 
butts  of  their  guns  the  weaker  ones,  who  could  hardly 
keep  up  with  the  crowd.  They  were  runaway  con- 
victs, who  had  been  caught  and  were  being  taken  to 
the  mines  to  serve  out  additional  terms  of  hard  labor. 

"Our  band  halted,  and  I  approached  the  unfortunate 
men.  In  Russia  the  ordinary  (non-political)  prisoners 
are  always  proud  to  have  among  them  some  persons 
who  have  been  condemned  for  noble  reasons.  They 
look  upon  the  political  prisoners  as  superior  beings, 
the  more  so  as  the  officials  with  whom  they  are  brought 
in  contact  are  the  last  persons  in  the  world  to  command 
any  esteem.  So  I  was  surrounded  by  these  convicts, 
these  thieves  and  brigands,  who  made  haste  to  offer 
me  their  services  to  carry  letters  to  my  friends  at  Kara, 
and  to  perform  any  other  commissions  with  which  I 
would  entrust  them.  And  it  must  be  said  that  they 
kept  their  promises  faithfully,  regarding  it  as  an  honor 
to  be  of  service  to  people  like  us. 

"I  asked  them  why  they  looked  so  wretched,  and 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION       91 

why  so  many  of  them  were  ill.  They  answered, 
'Because  bread  costs  twelve  cents  a  pound,  and  we  are 
given  only  six  cents  a  day  to  buy  food.  There  were 
two  hundred  and  fifty  of  us  when  we  left  the  prison  at 
Irkutsk.  Now  there  are  only  two  hundred  and  ten 
left.  Forty  have  died  on  the  way,  of  hunger  and  cold/ 

"The  soldiers,  who  had  drawn  near  our  group, 
complained  that  they  had  not  carts  enough  to  take 
up  the  dying.  They  said  we  should  find  six  corpses 
lying  by  the  roadside,  in  the  twenty  versts  between 
there  and  the  next  halting-place.  The  gloomy  faces 
of  the  vagabond  convicts  showed  that  a  similar  death 
awaited  many  of  them  on  the  march  of  hundreds  of 
versts  that  they  would  have  to  make  before  reaching 
Kara. 

"Most  of  these  men,  perhaps,  had  been  made  vaga- 
bonds by  the  horrible  conditions  created  by  autocratic 
officials,  accustomed  to  look  upon  the  common  people 
as  chattels  to  be  exploited  for  their  profit.  You  can 
imagine  my  feelings  whenever  we  passed  a  dead  body, 
gaunt  and  almost  naked,  as  we  continued  our  funeral 
march. 

"A  few  days  later,  we  arrived  at  another  halting- 
place,  near  Verkhni  Udinsk.  This  time  it  was  a 
beautiful  day,  with  the  sun  shining  so  brightly  as  to 
rejoice  one's  heart.  The  great  gate  opened  before  us, 
and  we  entered  a  large  courtyard  full  of  women  all 
dressed  in  white,  with  their  faces  painted  and  their 
hair  adorned  to  the  best  of  their  ability.  For  some 
days  the  soldiers  of  our  escort  had  been  laughing  and 
saying  that  we  should  soon  meet  a  band  of  women 
condemned  to  imprisonment  on  Saghalien,  to  which 
place  the  Russian  government  transports  women  con- 


92      LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

victs  that  are  young  enough  to  have  children,  in  order 
to  increase  the  population  of  that  desert  island.  But, 
as  it  takes  a  great  many  months  to  get  there,  moving 
from  halting-place  to  halting-place,  and  as  the  convicts 
in  Russian  prisons  are  regarded  as  having  not  only  no 
political  rights  but  no  human  rights,  the  Siberian 
government  conceived  the  idea  of  transforming  the 
bands  of  women  destined  to  Saghalien  into  bands  of 
prostitutes,  to  whom  every  officer,  every  functionary, 
every  soldier,  and  all  their  friends  and  acquaintances, 
could  have  access  at  will. 

"I  knew  nothing  about  it,  and  was  greatly  surprised 
to  see  women  prisoners,  on  a  journey,  adorned  as  if 
for  a  festival.  But  at  nightfall,  when  I  heard  cries, 
sobs,  shouts,  the  coarse  voices  of  drunken  men  — 
when  I  rushed  to  my  cell  window,  and  saw  horrible 
scenes,  impossible  to  describe  —  then  I  understood 
it  all,  and  I  thought  I  should  go  insane.  When  anyone 
has  survived  such  sights,  how  can  he  ever  forget  the 
misery  of  his  fellow  creatures  ?  How  can  he  do  other- 
wise than  swear  to  devote  his  life  to  the  deliverance 
of  his  people?  Next  morning  at  sunrise,  when,  worn 
out  with  sleeplessness  and  mental  torture,  I  went  out 
to  get  a  breath  of  air,  I  saw  before  me,  going  away 
through  the  great  gate,  a  herd  of  wretched  women, 
clad  in  filthy  rags,  their  faces  pale  and  drawn  with 
suffering.  They  were  the  unfortunate  women  prison- 
ers, starting  out  for  the  next  halting-place,  there  to 
be  subjected  to  fresh  degradation." 

Catherine  reached  Barguzin  in  February,  with  the 
thermometer  forty-five  degrees  below  zero.  Seeing 
a  few  forlorn  little  children,  she  proposed  to  start  a 
school.  The  police  agent  showed  her  the  police  rules 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION      93 

sent  out  from  Petrograd.  They  forbade  an  exiled 
teacher  to  teach,  an  exiled  doctor  to  cure  the  sick,  or 
any  educated  exile  to  exercise  his  profession  in  Siberia. 
The  government  feared  that  if  they  were  allowed  to 
minister  to  the  people,  they  might  spread  their  revolu- 
tionary ideas.  In  Siberia  ex-statesmen  were  often 
forced  to  hire  themselves  out  to  the  Cossacks  as  com- 
mon laborers  at  five  cents  a  day. 

In  Barguzin  there  were  three  young  students.  They 
were  "administrative  exiles"  —  that  is,  they  had 
been  banished  without  trial,  by  "administrative  order", 
because  they  had  fallen  under  suspicion.  Catherine 
and  the  students  made  up  their  minds  to  try  to  escape. 
She  says : 

"We  searched  two  years  for  a  guide  to  lead  us  a 
thousand  miles  to  the  Pacific.  We  found  a  bent  old 
peasant  who  had  made  the  journey  years  before. 
With  him  we  set  out  one  night,  leading  four  pack 
horses.  We  soon  found  the  old  man  useless.  We 
had  maps  and  a  compass,  but  these  did  little  good 
in  the  Taiga,  that  region  of  forest  crags  and  steep 
ravines  where  we  walked  now  toward  heaven  and  now 
toward  the  regions  below.  Often  I  watched  my  poor 
stupid  beast  go  rolling  and  snorting  down  a  ravine, 
hoping  as  he  passed  each  tree  that  the  next  would 
stop  his  fall.  Then  for  hours  we  would  use  all  our 
arts  and  energies  to  drag  and  coax  him  up.  It  was 
beautiful  weather  by  day,  but  bitterly  cold  by  night. 
We  had  hard-tack,  pressed  tea,  a  little  tobacco,  and  a 
small  supply  of  brandy,  which  was  served  out  in  my 
thimble  —  one  thimbleful  for  each.  We  walked  and 
climbed  about  six  hundred  miles;  in  a  straight  line 
perhaps  two  hundred. 


94       LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"Meanwhile  the  police  had  searched  in  vain.  The 
Governor  had  telegraphed  to  Petrograd,  and  from 
there  the  order  had  come  that  we  be  found  at  any  cost. 
The  plan  adopted  was  characteristic  of  the  System. 
Fifty  neighboring  farmers  were  seized  (in  harvest 
time),  and  were  exiled  from  their  farms  and  families 
until  they  should  bring  us  back.  After  weeks  of 
search,  they  found  us  in  the  Apple  Mountains.  Their 
leader  shouted  across  the  ravine  that  unless  we  gave 
in  they  must  keep  on  our  trail,  and  escape  was  im- 
possible. As  we  went  back,  around  each  of  us  rode 
ten  armed  men. 

"The  three  students  were  sent  in  different  directions 
up  into  the  worst  of  the  Arctic  wilderness  --  Yakutsk. 

"As  punishment  for  my  attempt  to  escape  I  was 
sentenced  to  four  years'  hard  labor  in  Kara  and  to 
forty  blows  of  the  lash.  A  physician  came  into  my 
cell  to  see  if  I  were  strong  enough  to  live  through  the 
agony.  I  saw  at  once  that,  being  afraid  to  flog  a 
woman  political  prisoner,  a  thing  for  which  there  was 
no  precedent,  by  this  trick  of  declaring  me  too  ill  to  be 
punished,  they  wished  to  establish  the  precedent  of 
the  sentence,  in  order  that  others  might  be  flogged 
in  the  future.  I  insisted  that  I  was  strong  enough, 
and  that  the  court  had  no  right  to  record  such  a  sen- 
tence unless  they  flogged  me  ,at  once.  The  sentence 
was  not  carried  out." 

On  getting  back  to  Kara,  Catherine  was  overjoyed 
to  find  about  twenty  other  women  who  were  political 
convicts.  At  the  time  of  her  first  imprisonment 
there  she  had  been  the  only  one.  In  spite  of  the  prison 
hardships,  this  was  one  of  the  happiest  seasons  of  her 
life,  it  was  so  great  a  delight  to  her  to  associate  with 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION      95 

so  many  women  of  the  noblest  character,  all  of  them 
devoted  to  the  cause  of  Russian  freedom. 

The  women  political  convicts  lived  together  in  four 
low  cells.  She  says  : 

"Our  clothing  was  a  chemise,  of  coarse  cloth,  a 
skirt  reaching  to  the  ankles,  no  drawers,  no  stockings, 
and  a  huge  pair  of  coarse  shoes.  Each  of  us  had  also 
a  gray  dressing-gown,  with  a  yellow  figure  on  the  back, 
marking  her  as  a  convict.  We  had  plenty  of  clothes 
of  our  own,  but  they  were  stowed  away  in  one  of  the 
storehouses  of  the  prison,  and  we  were  not  allowed 
to  have  them. 

"After  a  few  weeks  eight  of  the  male  political  pris- 
oners escaped,  leaving  dummies  in  their  places.  As 
the  guards  never  took  more  than  a  hasty  look  into 
that  noisome  cell,  they  did  not  discover  the  trick  for 
weeks.  Then  mounted  Cossacks  rode  out.  The  man- 
hunt spread.  Some  of  the  fugitives  struggled  through 
jungles,  over  mountains,  and  through  swamps  a  thou- 
sand miles  to  Vladivostok,  saw  the  longed-for  American 
vessels,  and  there  on  the  docks  were  recaptured.  All 
were  brought  back  to  Kara. 

"For  this  we  were  all  punished.  One  morning  the 
Cossack  guards  entered  our  cells,  seized  us,  tore  off 
our  clothes,  and  dressed  us  in  convict  suits  alive  with 
vermin.  That  scene  cannot  be  described.  One  of 
the  women  attempted  suicide.  We  were  thrown  into 
an  old  prison,  where  we  were  lodged  in  a  long,  low, 
grimy  hall,  with  little  cells  like  horse  stalls  opening 
off  it  on  either  side.  Each  of  us  had  a  stall  six  feet 
by  five.  On  winter  nights  the  stall  doors  were  left 
open  for  warmth,  but  in  summer  each  woman  was  locked 
at  night  in  her  own  black  hole. 


96      LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"There  were  no  windows,  only  two  small  panes  of 
glass,  high  up  in  the  wall.  At  each  end  of  the  hall 
was  a  window,  and  a  large  stove  where  we  cooked  our 
food.  The  building  was  old,  filthy,  and  dilapidated, 
with  gaps  in  the  walls,  through  which  the  snow  and 
ice  came  into  our  cells  every  night.  The  roof  leaked, 
and  the  icicles  formed  stalactites  and  stalagmites. 

"At  first  we  used  to  attack  the  icicles  with  knives, 
trying  to  clear  our  cells  of  them,  but  it  was  of  no  use ; 
they  always  came  back.  In  a  Siberian  winter  the 
thermometer  goes  down  to  fifty  degrees  below  zero, 
and  at  Kara  the  winter  is  eight  months  long.  There 
are  only  two  months  when  it  does  not  freeze  at  night. 

"The  prison  was  literally  swarming  with  vermin. 
They  covered  the  walls,  the  floor,  the  beds,  our  clothes. 
For  three  months  we  did  not  use  our  bunks,  but  de- 
voted ourselves  to  fighting  the  insects.  We  smeared 
the  walls  with  tallow  from  our  candles,  and  then  set 
the  tallow  on  fire.  We  used  pails  of  scalding  water. 
After  months  of  incessant  warfare,  we  succeeded  in 
exterminating  them. 

"Our  food  was  a  little  black  bread  and  twelve 
pounds  of  meat  a  month,  with  which  to  make  soup. 
The  meat  was  blue  and  smelt  badly.  We  had  no  vege- 
tables. 

"My  fellow  prisoners  were  mostly  young  women  of 
the  nobility,  excellent  and  charming,  but  delicately 
bred,  and  not  physically  able  to  bear  such  hardships. 
They  sickened  one  by  one.  Their  bodies  became 
blue  with  scurvy. 

f  "In  answer  to  our  entreaties  for  vegetables,  we 
were  finally  told  that  we  might  have  potato  plants 
—  not  the  potatoes,  but  the  tops  which  had  been 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION       97 

chopped  up,  slightly  salted  and  packed  in  a  silo  as  for 
cattle  fodder.  We  tried  these  potato  leaves  in  our 
soup  for  three  or  four  days,  but  we  could  not  eat  them. 

"We  sent  for  the  doctor.  He  came  and  inspected 
us,  but  told  us  he  had  orders  from  the  government 
not  to  give  us  any  medical  care.  My  companions 
grew  more  and  more  ill.  We  made  a  small  riot,  battered 
on  the  hall  door,  and  demanded  the  doctor  with  a  loud 
noise.  The  ringleaders  were  bound  hand  and  foot 
and  shut  into  their  cells. 

"But  the  Russian  government  has  not  enough 
strength  of  character  to  stick  steadily  to  any  one  course, 
even  a  course  of  cruelty.  After  refusing  and  refusing, 
if  the  prisoners  persist  long  enough  in  keeping  up  a 
protest,  being  noisy  and  making  themselves  a  nuisance, 
the  jailors  will  often  end  by  saying,  'Very  well,  the 
deuce  take  you,  have  the  doctor,  if  you  must.' 

"  The  doctor  was  at  last  allowed  to  visit  us ;  but 
my  companions  died  one  after  another  till  half  of 
them  were  gone." 

Catherine  herself  did  not  even  fall  ill.  She  says 
she  was  too  busy  nursing  the  others.  But  her  friends 
in  America  were  impressed  by  her  broad  shoulders 
and  deep  chest,  which  showed  that  she  had  an  un- 
commonly powerful  physique.  At  the  time  of  her 
visit  to  this  country,  out  of  all  the  women  who  had  been 
her  fellow  prisoners  at  Kara,  only  one  or  two  survived, 
completely  broken  down  in  health,  while  she  was  still 
active  and  vigorous.  She  says  : 

"For  three  years  we  never  breathed  the  outside  air. 
We  struggled  constantly  against  the  ill  treatment 
inflicted  on  us.  After  one  outrage  we  lay  like  a  row 
of  dead  women  for  nine  days  without  touching  food, 


98      LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

until  certain  promises  were  finally  exacted  from  the 
warden.  This  'hunger  strike'  was  used  repeatedly. 
To  thwart  it  we  were  often  bound  hand  and  foot  while 
Cossacks  tried  to  force  food  down  our  throats." 

After  serving  out  her  term  at  Kara,  Catherine  was 
taken  to  Selenginsk,  a  little  Buriat  hamlet  on  the 
frontier  of  China.  From  Kara  to  Selenginsk  was  a 
journey  of  a  thousand  miles.  They  made  it  entirely 
on  foot.  They  used  to  walk  about  thirty  miles  a  day 
for  two  days,  and  rest  every  third  day.  There  were 
two  women  in  the  party,  and  about  a  hundred  men, 
most  of  them  ordinary  (i.e.,  not  political)  convicts. 
They  were  guarded  by  a  squad  of  soldiers. 

It  was  at  Selenginsk  that  George  Kennan  saw  her. 
In  his  book,  "Siberia  and  the  Exile  System",  he 
describes  her  as  follows  (Volume  2,  pages  121-122) : 

"She  was  perhaps  thirty-five  years  of  age,  with  a 
strong,  intelligent,  but  not  handsome  face,  a  frank, 
unreserved  manner,  and  sympathies  that  seemed  to 
be  warm,  impulsive,  and  generous.  Her  face  bore 
traces  of  much  suffering,  and  her  thick,  dark,  wavy 
hair,  which  had  been  cut  short  in  prison  at  the  mines, 
was  streaked  here  and  there  with  gray;  but  neither 
hardship,  nor  exile,  nor  penal  servitude  had  been  able 
to  break  her  brave,  finely-tempered  spirit,  or  to  shake 
her  convictions  of  honor  and  duty.  She  was,  as  I 
soon  discovered,  a  woman  of  much  cultivation.  She 
spoke  French,  German,  and  English,  was  a  fine  musician, 
and  impressed  me  as  being  in  every  way  an  attractive 
and  interesting  woman  .  .  .  She  had  been  sent  as  a 
forced  colonist  to  this  wretched,  God-forsaken  Buriat 
settlement  of  Selenginsk,  where  she  was  under  the  direct 
supervision  and  control  of  the  interesting  chief  of 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION       99 

police  who  accompanied  us  to  the  Buddhist  lamasery 
of  Goose  Lake.  There  was  not  another  educated 
woman,  so  far  as  I  know,  within  a  hundred  miles  in 
any  direction;  she  received  from  the  government 
an  allowance  of  a  dollar  and  a  quarter  a  week  for  her 
support ;  her  correspondence  was  under  police  control ; 
she  was  separated  for  life  from  her  family  and  friends ; 
and  she  had,  it  seemed  to  me,  absolutely  nothing  to 
look  forward  to  except  a  few  years,  more  or  less,  of 
hardship  and  privation,  and  at  last  burial  in  a  lonely 
graveyard  beside  the  Selenga  river,  where  no  sympa- 
thetic eye  might  ever  rest  upon  the  unpainted  wooden 
cross  that  would  briefly  chronicle  her  life  and  death. 
The  unshaken  courage  with  which  this  unfortunate 
woman  contemplated  her  dreary  future,  and  the  faith 
that  she  manifested  in  the  ultimate  triumph  of  liberty 
in  her  native  country,  were  as  touching  as  they  were 
heroic.  Almost  the  last  words  that  she  said  to  me 
were:  'Mr.  Kennan,  we  may  die  in  exile,  and  our 
children  may  die  in  exile,  and  our  children's  children 
may  die  in  exile,  but  something  will  come  of  it  at  last.' 
I  have  never  seen  or  heard  of  Madame  Breshkovskaya 
since  that  day;  but  I  cannot  recall  her  last  words  to 
me  without  feeling  conscious  that  all  my  standards  of 
courage,  of  fortitude,  and  of  heroic  self-sacrifice  have 
been  raised  for  all  time,  and  raised  by  the  hand  of  a 
woman." 

Catherine  gave  Mr.  Kennan  a  letter  for  her  former 
fellow  convicts  at  Kara.  When  she  had  been  serving 
her  term  with  them,  she  had  often  said  to  them,  in 
joke:  "America  is  a  free  country,  and  the  Americans 
hate  oppression.  Some  day  some  American  will  come 
here  and  help  us  to  escape."  Everybody  understood 


100    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

that  this  was  merely  a  fairy  tale,  but  it  amused  the 
convicts. 

When  Mr.  Kennan  arrived  at  Kara,  he  found  the 
political  prisoners  living  outside  the  mines  in  little 
huts.  A  secret  message  was  sent  around  to  them  that 
an  American  had  arrived  with  a  letter  from  Catherine 
Breshkovsky,  and  that  he  was  waiting  in  a  certain 
hut  to  read  it  to  them.  But  nobody  believed  the 
news.  Everybody  said,  "Oh,  we  all  know  about 
Catherine  Breshkovsky  and  her  American.  That  is 
just  a  joke."  It  was  not  until  a  second  and  a  third 
urgent  message  had  been  sent  that  some  one  at  last 
went,  still  incredulous,  and  peeped  into  the  cabin, 
and  came  rushing  back  in  amazement  to  announce 
that  there  really  was  an  American  there. 

The  eight  years  that  Catherine  spent  at  Selenginsk 
were  the  hardest  part  of  the  long  term  that  she 
served  in  Siberia.  Usually  she  had  no  one  except  a 
few  natives  to  speak  to,  although  from  time  to  time 
one  or  two  other  political  exiles  were  there  for  a  few 
weeks.  In  winter,  with  the  thermometer  from  twenty 
to  fifty  below  zero,  she  used  to  put  her  chair  on  top  of 
the  brick  stove,  and  sit  with  her  head  close  to  the 
thatch.  In  Selenginsk  she  caught  the  severe  rheu- 
matism that  still  affects  her.  She  says  : 

"  The  government  allowed  me  $6  a  month.  My  hut 
rent  was  50  cents,  wood  $1.50,  food  $4.00.  My  friends 
at  home  sent  money  too,  but  of  course  I  sent  this  to 
my  friends  at  Kara.  At  long  intervals  one  of  their 
many  letters  reached  me  —  sometimes  sewed  in  the 
lining  of  a  Buriat  cap.  I  grew  almost  frantic  with 
loneliness,  and  to  keep  my  sanity  I  would  run  out  on 
the  snow  shouting  passionate  orations,  or  even  playing 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    101 

the  prima  donna,  and  singing  grand  opera  arias  to 
the  bleak  landscape,  which  never  applauded. 

"My  heart  burned  with  a  passionate  desire  to  escape, 
to  renew  the  struggle.  I  languished  like  a  hawk  in  a 
cage.  There  was  not  a  day  when  I  did  not  think  of 
escaping,  and  I  was  ready  to  run  any  risk;  but  the 
thing  was  impossible.  Those  eight  empty  years  in 
Selenginsk  have  remained  as  a  gray  void  in  my  memory. 

"Only  the  thought  of  my  comrades'  suffering  made 
me  forget  my  own.  I  filled  my  time  with  work,  so  as 
to  be  able  to  send  my  earnings  to  the  dark  prisons,  the 
snowbound  wastes,  the  hungry,  forgotten  comrades. 
I  read  and  studied,  in  order  to  know  how  mankind 
lived,  and  how  far  or  near  was  the  possibility  of  trans- 
forming it." 

At  last  she  became  a  "free  exile",  i.e.,  she  received 
a  passport  permitting  her  to  travel  all  over  Siberia. 
Her  health  had  been  much  impaired,  but  she  soon 
grew  strong  again.  The  last  four  years  of  her  term  in 
Siberia  were  spent  in  going  from  town  to  town,  talking 
with  the  people,  young  and  old,  and  preparing  them 
for  revolution.  At  Irkutsk,  Tobolsk,  Tiumen,  wherever 
she  sojourned,  there  grew  up  around  her  a  circle  of 
determined  revolutionists.  She  made  allies  of  some 
of  the  leading  citizens  of  Siberia. 

She  still  persisted  in  giving  away  to  those  more 
needy  than  herself  the  money  sent  her  from  home. 
Sometimes,  when  she  had  hundreds  of  rubles  in  her 
basket,  she  went  around  (to  use  her  own  words)  "as 
hungry  as  a  dog."  She  would  walk  the  streets  and 
make  calls  upon  her  friends,  with  the  secret  hope  that 
someone  might  offer  her  a  cup  of  tea  or  a  bit  of  bread. 
She  earned  some  money  by  sewing,  but  this  also  she 


102    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

sent  to  Kara.  She  became  hardened  to  privation. 
Arriving  in  Boston  once  after  a  long  railroad  journey, 
she  mentioned  casually  that  she  had  had  nothing  to 
eat  all  day.  When  a  friend  expressed  horror,  she 
answered,  "Oh,  one  day  —  what  is  that?" 

As  her  term  of  exile  drew  toward  a  close,  she  knew 
by  the  increasing  procession  of  political  exiles  from 
Russia  that  the  work  of  the  revolutionists  was  spread- 
ing. With  hundreds  of  comrades,  she  planned  for 
the  future  carrying  on  of  the  struggle.  In  September, 
1896,  her  term  expired,  and  she  went  home. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

AFTER  her  return  to  Russia,  Catherine  spent  three 
months  in  visiting  relatives  and  old  friends.  To  her 
surprise,  she  found  that  her  surviving  sister  had  aged 
much  more  rapidly  than  she  had.  She  drew  the 
conclusion  that  strong  mental  occupation  and  inter- 
est are  more  effective  in  preserving  health,  even  under 
great  hardships,  than  a  life  of  comfort  and  luxury. 
She  said  of  her  sister's  family:  "They  were  worried 
about  their  coffee;  they  were  worried  about  their 
garden;  they  were  worried  about  everything.  I  had 
had  no  baggage  for  thirty  years,  and  I  was  not  worried 
about  anything." 

Barbara  Tchaykovsky  wrote  in  after  years:  "I 
remember  how,  when  she  stayed  with  us,  the  sight  of 
her  tiny  handbag,  containing  all  her  worldly  posses- 
sions, made  me  ashamed  of  attaching  much  importance 
to  mere  personal  comfort,  while  men  and  women  were 
being  tortured." 

Her  son  Nicholas  had  been  brought  up  by  kind  but 
conservative  relatives,  who  had  told  him  that  his 
mother  was  dead.  Educated  in  the  ideas  of  the  aris- 
tocracy, he  had  no  sympathy  with  her  aims.  She  had 
one  interview  with  him,  and  then  parted  with  him,  as 
she  supposed,  for  life,  or  until  the  coming  of  the  revo- 
lution; for  she  could  not  keep  up  any  communication 

103 


104    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

with  him  without  danger  of  bringing  him  under  sus- 
picion from  the  government. 

Then  she  scoured  Russia  for  the  remnants  of  the 
"Old  Guard."  She  had  not  even  the  names  and  ad- 
dresses of  the  old  comrades  who  still  survived.  With 
time  and  patience,  she  brought  them  together,  and 
promptly  plunged  anew  into  her  old  work  of  organiz- 
ing the  peasants.  She  found  them  greatly  changed. 
They  were  even  more  wretched  than  they  had  been 
twenty  years  before;  but  they  were  also  much  more 
intelligent,  and  more  nearly  ripe  for  revolution.  She 
says: 

"When  I  began  again  to  travel,  I  noticed  at  once  a 
vast  difference.  I  no  longer  walked,  but  had  money 
for  the  railroads,  and  so  covered  ten  times  the  ground. 
For  six  years  the  railway  compartment  was  my  home. 
I  held  meetings  on  river  boats  by  night,  in  city  tene- 
ment rooms,  in  peasant  huts,  and  in  the  forests;  but, 
unlike  the  old  times,  the  way  had  always  been  prepared 
by  some  one  before  me.  I  was  constantly  protected." 

For  several  years  she  traveled  openly,  under  her  own 
name,  although  she  did  her  organizing  in  secret.  Then, 
finding  that  she  was  suspected,  she  disguised  herself 
as  a  peasant,  and  thus  kept  on  with  her  work  for  some 
years  more. 

The  government  made  every  effort  to  catch  her, 
but  without  success.  The  peasants  loved  her,  and 
would  no  more  have  betrayed  her  than  the  Scotch  would 
have  betrayed  Prince  Charlie.  She  had  many  hair- 
breadth escapes.  Once  she  was  in  a  railroad  station 
when  the  police  had  guarded  all  the  doors  and  were 
watching  every  out-going  train  for  her.  In  the  waiting 
room,  she  got  into  conversation  with  a  party  of  nuns 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    105 

and  their  abbess.  The  abbess  was  attracted  by  her 
and  invited  her  to  visit  their  convent.  She  left  the 
station  in  their  company,  without  suspicion,  and  spent 
several  days  in  the  convent,  while  the  police  scoured 
the  city  for  her  in  vain. 

Once  the  police  surrounded  a  country  house  where 
she  was  visiting  friends.  It  was  the  cook's  day  out. 
She  put  on  the  cook's  clothes,  and  stood  in  the  kitchen 
cooking  the  dinner  while  they  searched  the  house. 

Once  she  was  staying  in  the  south  of  Russia,  dis- 
guised as  a  Frenchwoman.  On  some  rumor,  the 
police  came  along,  examining  passports  in  every  house 
in  the  block.  As  they  entered  the  front  door,  she 
slipped  out  at  the  rear,  and  into  the  back  door  of  the 
next  house,  which  they  had  just  left. 

At  another  time  she  was  staying  in  Kiev  with  a  girl 
of  seventeen,  an  active  revolutionary  worker,  who  had 
been  suspected  and  was  under  police  surveillance. 
They  slept  together  in  her  tiny  tenement  room.  The 
spies  watching  the  window  observed  that  there  was 
some  one  with  her.  The  next  night  suddenly  a  gen- 
darme knocked  and  said,  "There  is  some  one  sleeping 
with  you.  Why  have  you  not  announced  it  to  the 
police?"  Fortunately,  Catherine  was  out  at  the 
time.  The  girl  was  dreadfully  frightened,  but  managed 
to  reply,  "Only  my  grandmother  who  has  come  to  see 
me."  The  moment  he  had  gone  she  slipped  out  into 
the  rain  and  found  Catherine  at  a  secret  meeting.  She 
told  what  had  happened,  crying,  "Oh,  Granny,  Granny  ! 
They  are  on  your  track,  they  are  on  your  track!" 
"Do  not  be  troubled,"  said  Catherine.  "If  they  had 
suspected  that  it  was  I,  they  would  have  broken  the 
door  down  and  come  straight  in.  They  only  want 


106    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

to  know  who  is  staying  with  you."  Her  friends  im- 
mediately dressed  her  up  in  silks  and  fashionable  furs, 
and  sent  her  to  the  railroad  station  in  a  carriage,  in 
style,  as  a  great  lady. 

During  her  visit  to  America  a  woman  of  wealth  made 
her  a  present  of  a  trunkful  of  handsome  clothes.  She 
was  at  a  loss  what  to  do  with  them,  but  finally  accepted 
them,  saying  that  they  might  be  useful  to  her  some- 
time as  a  disguise.  This  suggestion  delighted  the  kind 
heart  of  the  giver,  who  had  been  much  disappointed 
at  the  prospect  of  her  present  being  refused. 

When  hard  pressed  by  the  police,  Catherine  could 
change  herself  at  will  into  an  old  peasant  woman.  She 
showed  us  how  she  once  did  this  in  Odessa.  In  a 
twinkling  her  shawl  came  over  her  head,  her  hands 
were  clasped  in  her  lap,  her  head  nodded.  A  bent, 
decrepit  old  peasant  woman  looked  from  under  the 
shawl  with  a  vacant  grin.  When  she  wanted  to  evade 
the  police  in  the  streets,  she  would  often  kneel  down 
before  the  sacred  images  in  some  outdoor  shrine,  and 
personate  an  old  peasant  woman  praying  with  bowed 
head. 

Catherine  had  begun  as  a  Liberal,  but  long  before 
this  she  had  become  an  ardent  Socialist.  The  aspect 
of  the  revolutionary  movement  in  Russia  had  changed 
also.  She  said : 

"Our  old  'People's  Party'  had  become  the  *  Party 
of  the  Will  of  the  People',  and  had  died  when  thou- 
sands of  its  leaders  were  sent  to  exile  or  prison.  In 
1887  the  Social  Democratic  Party  was  formed,  work- 
ing mainly  in  the  factories  and  mills.  Here  they 
found  ready  listeners,  for  the  laborers,  who  had  formed 
unions  to  mitigate  their  wretched  condition,  were 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    107 

often  lashed  to  death.  It  was  against  the  law  to  go 
on  strike.  Once  when  a  labor  leader  had  been  ar- 
rested and  a  committee  from  the  workers  came  to 
the  prison  to  ask  his  release,  they  were  shot  down 
by  the  prison  officials.  Several  times  men  were  shot 
for  parading  on  the  First  of  May.  Among  the  work- 
ers the  new  party  gained  strength  until  about  1900. 
Then  all  its  Jewish  members  seceded  and  formed 
the  'Bund',  which  favored  immediate  revolution. 
Others  too  seceded." 

About  this  time  the  party  of  the  Socialist  Revolu- 
tionists came  into  existence.  Catherine  Breshkovsky 
was  one  of  its  leading  spirits,  with  Doctor  Gregory 
Gershuni1  and  other  fearless  souls.  They  concerned 
themselves  chiefly  with  the  peasants,  who  make  up 
140,000,000  of  the  170,000,000  inhabitants  of  Russia. 
Like  the  Social  Democrats,  they  believed  in  the  gen- 
eral principles  of  Socialism  and  worked  to  bring  in  the 
Socialist  commonwealth.  But  they  held  that  the  first 
step  must  be  to  overthrow  the  autocracy.  Freedom 
by  revolution  was  their  slogan. 

In  1900,  the  government  issued  a  general  order  to 
the  police  throughout  the  empire,  that  three  revolu- 
tionary leaders  were  wanted  —  Catherine  Breshkovsky, 
Gershuni,  and  Melnikov.  By  this  time  revolutionary 
circles  existed  all  through  Russia.  Scores  of  secret 
printing  offices,  in  Switzerland  and  in  Russia  itself, 
were  working  day  and  night,  pouring  out  revolution- 
ary literature,  and  the  "underground  mails"  carried 
it  from  one  end  of  the  country  to  the  other.  The 
Socialist  Revolutionist  party  was  teaching  the  peas- 
ants the  old  lesson  —  that  the  land  must  be  owned 
1  See  Appendix, 


108    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

by  the  people,  and  that  the  government  of  the  Czar 
must  be  overthrown.  In  order  not  to  take  needless 
risks,  the  central  committee  of  the  party  was  scattered 
all  through  Russia.  Its  members  seldom  met,  but 
constantly  planned  and  directed  the  work,  instructing 
the  provincial  committees,  which  in  turn  passed  on 
the  word  to  the  small  local  committees,  and  so  down 
to  the  thousands  of  little  groups  of  peasants  and  labor- 
ers that  met  by  night  in  country  huts  and  city  tene- 
ments. The  leaders  traveled  constantly  from  group 
to  group.  As  soon  as  one  was  arrested  another  took 
his  place. 

In  1901  the  Fighting  League  was  organized.  It  was 
made  up  wholly  of  Terrorists.  Its  object  was  to  put 
to  death  officials  who  were  guilty  of  particularly 
atrocious  crimes,  in  the  hope  that  their  fate  would  be 
a  warning  to  others.  Catherine  was  in  full  sympathy 
with  this  movement. 

Political  assassination  is  rightly  abhorred  in  America. 
But  in  Russia  there  was  no  possibility  of  obtaining 
justice  by  law,  even  for  the  most  monstrous  crimes. 
No  subject  had  any  legal  rights  as  against  the  Czar : 
and  the  Czar's  irresponsible  power  was  delegated  to 
a  whole  army  of  police  and  other  subordinate  officials, 
who  oppressed  the  people  at  their  pleasure.  The 
country's  noblest  men  and  women  were  persecuted, 
imprisoned,  and  exiled ;  and  the  officials  who  treated 
them  worst  were  thought  to  deserve  best  of  the  Czar. 

In  the  Caucasus,  a  convention  of  women  teachers 
met  to  discuss  plans  for  an  improved  curriculum.  A 
Colonel  who  disapproved  of  teachers  holding  meet- 
ings for  any  purpose  ordered  the  assembly  to  disperse. 
Two  or  three  of  the  more  spirited  teachers  went  to 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    109 

him  to  protest.  He  was  so  enraged  by  the  remon- 
strance that  he  said  to  his  men,  "  These  women  are 
yours",  and  turned  the  whole  convention  of  teachers 
over  to  the  soldiers  to  be  outraged.  He  could  not  be 
brought  to  justice.  In  the  eyes  of  the  government, 
such  deeds  were  a  mark  of  zeal,  and  were  looked  upon 
as  deserving  promotion  rather  than  punishment. 
The  Colonel  was  assassinated.  So  was  Von  Plehve, 
who  as  Chief  of  Police  had  started  outrages  against 
the  Jews  in  1881,  and  later,  as  Minister  of  the  Interior, 
had  caused  the  Kishineff  massacre.  He  had  also 
revived  the  use  of  the  knout  to  lash  men  and  women. 
A  number  of  other  officials  of  the  same  type  were  con- 
demned by  the  revolutionary  secret  tribunal  and  killed. 

The  Fighting  League,  however,  had  a  comparatively 
small  membership.  It  was  a  sort  of  guerrilla  force 
auxiliary  to  the  great  revolutionary  movement.  Revo- 
lution by  the  whole  people  was  the  object  for  which 
Catherine  and  her  friends  were  striving. 

"In  1903,"  she  writes  in  the  "Neva"  of  Petrograd, 
"the  Socialist  Revolutionary  party  suffered  great 
misfortunes.  Wholesale  arrests  and  searches  robbed 
it  of  many  of  its  leading  workers,  of  its  best  printing 
offices,  and  stores  of  literature.  It  was  necessary  to 
replace  all  that.  By  this  time  the  work  of  the  party 
had  grown  strong  abroad,  thanks  to  our  talented  and 
zealous  emigrants,  who  bent  all  their  energies  to  the 
publication  of  party  organs  and  popular  books  and 
pamphlets. 

"In  order  to  recall  these  young  people  to  immediate 
activity  at  home,  in  Russia,  I  went  abroad  for  the  first 
time.  In  May,  1903,  I  boarded  a  steamer  at  Odessa 
and  went,  by  way  of  Roumania,  Hungary,  and  Vienna, 


110    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

to  Geneva,  Switzerland,  the  centre  of  the  party  work- 
ers scattered  in  Paris,  London,  and  Switzerland.  At 
this  conference  we  were  joined  by  the  old  fighters 
of  the  '7Q's,  Shishko,  Volkhovsky,  LazarefF,  Tchay- 
kovsky. 

"  The  young  people  attended  our  meetings,  and  lis- 
tened eagerly.  Victor  Tchernoff,  the  editor-in-chief 
of  our  central  organs  (and  Minister  of  Agriculture  in 
Kernsky's  first  cabinet),  victoriously  defended  the  posi- 
tion of  the  party.  I  urged  the  necessity  of  tackling 
the  real  task,  to  propagate  our  ideas  among  the  peasants 
and  workmen,  to  organize  all  the  forces  able  and  ready 
to  enter  upon  a  battle  with  the  old  regime,  ready  to 
sacrifice  their  lives  for  a  free  Russia.  And  thus  a 
stream  of  young  people  of  both  sexes  began  to  flow 
back  to  Russia,  carrying  with  them  our  literature,  and 
the  booklets  'In  Battle  Shalt  Thou  Obtain  Thy  Rights* 
were  distributed  all  through  the  fatherland.  This  task 
of  directing  the  forces  of  young  Russia  occupied  two 
whole  years  of  my  life." 

In  the  meantime,  in  1904,  she  visited  the  United 
States,  to  enlist  help  for  the  cause. 


CHAPTER  IX 

MADAME  BRESHKOVSKY  (I  shall  give  her  hencefor- 
ward the  name  by  which  she  was  known  in  America) 
was  warmly  received  in  the  United  States.  She  ad- 
dressed great  audiences  in  New  York,  Boston,  Phil- 
adelphia, Chicago,  and  elsewhere.  The  meeting  held 
to  welcome  her  in  Faneuil  Hall,  Boston,  was  typical. 
The  following  account  is  taken  from  the  Woman's 
Journal  of  December  17,  1904 : 

"Seldom  has  Faneuil  Hall  seen  so  great  an  audience 
as  gathered  on  the  evening  of  Dec.  14  at  the  meeting 
called  by  the  society  of  'Friends  of  Russian  Freedom* 
to  welcome  Madame  Catherine  Breshkovsky. 

"Nearly  3000  persons  thronged  Faneuil  Hall, 
hundreds  standing  all  through  the  evening.  There 
were  many  distinguished  persons  on  the  platform. 
Hon.  William  Dudley  Foulke,  president  of  the  Friends 
of  Russian  Freedom,  occupied  the  chair. 

"Addresses  were  made  by  Professor  F.  C.  de  Sumi- 
chrast  and  Professor  Leo  Wiener  of  Harvard,  Mrs. 
Julia  Ward  Howe,  Abraham  Cahan  of  New  York,  and 
Henry  B.  Blackwell.  In  addition,  Mr.  John  Romasz- 
kiewicz  made  an  address  in  Polish,  Mr.  Philip  Davis 
in  Yiddish,  and  Dr.  Shitlovsky  of  Berne  in  German. 

"Madame  Breshkovsky  can  speak  English,  but  not 

fluently  enough  to  make  a  set  address ;  so  she  generally 

111 


112    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

speaks  in  French.  This  evening,  however,  as  there 
were  many  Russians  present,  she  spoke  in  Russian, 
and  Dr.  Cahan  acted  as  interpreter. 

"When  the  'Grand  Old  Lady'  got  up  to  speak,  the 
great  audience  rose  en  masse.  Handkerchiefs  waved, 
hats  were  flung  up  into  the  air,  words  of  affection  in 
five  languages  were  rained  upon  her  from  all  parts  of 
the  hall,  and  the  applause  was  deafening. 

"Madame  Breshkovsky  had  written  out  in  advance 
what  she  meant  to  say.  It  was  as  follows : 

MADAME  BRESHKOVSKY'S  SPEECH 

"We  are  a  long  way  from  Russia,  and  it  may  seem 
strange  to  you  to  hear  anyone  speak  with  warmth  of 
a  country  and  of  questions  that  are  so  far  away, 
beyond  the  mountains  and  the  sea.  You  who  are 
sitting  quietly  in  a  beautiful,  well-lighted  hall  in  Boston, 
what  have  you  to  do  with  the  gloomy  prisons  in  Russia, 
and  with  the  deadly  struggle  which  has  been  going 
on  for  so  many  years  between  the  vanguard  of  the 
Russian  people  and  the  autocratic  Russian  govern- 
ment? It  is  they  over  yonder  who  are  waging  the 
conflict,  it  is  they  who  are  suffering  and  dying  to  give 
posterity  a  better  future.  It  is  there  that  the  martyrs 
are  groaning,  that  the  tears  of  their  families  are  fall- 
ing, and  that  the  champions  of  freedom  are  being 
wounded  and  mutilated. 

"  You  will  be  asked  what  their  fate  is  to  you  ?  Many 
years  ago,  as  I  sat  in  prison  surrounded  by  a  gloomy 
silence,  the  wicket  in  my  cell  door  opened,  and  my 
eyes  fell  on  an  envelope  which  brought  me  a  greeting 
from  afar,  a  good  wish  from  a  group  of  sympathizers 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    113 

in  Switzerland.  Then  I  was  happy.  My  strength 
was  revived  by  the  consciousness  that  outside  the 
prison  walls  there  were  friendly  hearts  that  under- 
stood and  sympathized,  and  longed  to  help  me.  The 
prison  walls  opened  before  me,  and  my  mind  soared 
fearlessly  to  meet  new  dangers  and  sufferings.  Friends, 
all  Russia  is  an  immense  prison  to  every  Russian  of 
progressive  ideas.  It  is  worth  everything  to  the  men 
and  women  who  are  working  for  freedom  in  Russia 
to  know  that  free  and  civilized  nations  sympathize 
with  them  and  wish  them  success. 

"The  party  of  progress  in  Russia  is  the  more  inter- 
ested in  having  friends  in  all  other  countries,  because 
it  sees  that  the  time  of  deliverance  for  the  Russian 
people  is  coming  nearer  and  nearer.  All  classes  of 
the  population  are  alike  discontented  with  autocracy, 
all  are  longing  to  be  freed  from  the  yoke  of  despotism, 
and  perhaps  the  happy  day  of  our  country's  deliver- 
ance is  not  far  away. 

"But  every  political  party  that  is  in  earnest,  as 
ours  is,  wishes  to  secure  in  advance  a  friendly  atmos- 
phere, and  to  win  auxiliaries  that  may  help  in  case  of 
need.  Everybody  knows  that  the  struggle  carried  on 
by  the  progressive  elements  against  Russian  autocracy 
is  not  only  difficult,  but  dangerous,  and  not  only 
dangerous,  but  also  very  expensive.  The  autocracy 
has  at  its  disposal  armies  of  gendarmes,  of  police,  and 
of  spies;  it  spends  millions  to  hunt  down  and  anni- 
hilate all  those  in  Russia  who  differ  with  its  views. 
On  the  other  side  are  only  groups  of  people  without 
money,  and  persecuted  even  to  death.  We  have 
scarcely  time  to  get  together  and  organize  when  we 
are  attacked,  arrested,  imprisoned,  and  exiled.  In 


114    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

Russia  the  government  every  year  deprives  the  nation 
of  the  services  of  10,000  men  and  women,  the  best, 
most  capable,  and  most  energetic  in  Russia,  by  impris- 
oning some,  exiling  others,  and  putting  still  others 
under  police  surveillance,  which  makes  it  impossible 
for  them  to  work  for  their  country. 

"Nevertheless,  what  do  we  see?  We  see  the  pro- 
gressive movement  in  Russia  growing  day  by  day, 
and  all  classes  taking  a  widespread  and  intelligent  part 
in  it.  The  system  of  despotic  monarchy  has  so  dis- 
gusted all  the  people,  and  the  miseries  resulting  from 
it  have  brought  them  so  near  the  verge  of  ruin,  that 
no  one,  except  a  few  unprincipled  men  immediately 
around  the  throne,  is  willing  to  have  the  present  regime 
continue.  And  that  is  why  all  the  government's 
efforts  to  crush  out  everything  that  tends  to  emanci- 
pation come  to  nothing,  and  cannot  check  the  victo- 
rious march  of  progressive  ideas,  which  are  permeat- 
ing even  the  deep  mass  of  the  Russian  peasantry. 
This  is  also  why  I  appeal  to  you,  friends,  to  help  a 
cause  which  not  only  is  worthy  of  every  aid,  but  has 
a  brilliant  and  not  remote  future. 

"It  is  not  weakness  or  lack  of  success  that  leads  us 
to  come  to  you;  it  is  the  enlargement  of  our  work, 
and  its  success,  almost  beyond  our  expectations,  that 
obliges  us  to  appeal  to  the  sympathy  of  free  peoples, 
for  their  help  in  this  hour  of  a  decisive  struggle,  where 
the  victory  will  bring  happiness  to  the  whole  of  our 
suffering  country.  We  must  take  care  not  to  leave 
ourselves  without  support,  at  a  time  when  a  decided 
gesture,  a  severe  word  addressed  to  our  government 
by  the  free  government  of  a  free  country,  might  turn 
the  scale  hi  the  right  direction  —  that  of  the  freedom 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    115 

and  happiness  of  our  people.  You  know  that  every 
struggle  is  carried  on  by  means  of  two  kinds  of  forces, 
moral  and  material ;  and  we  ask  you  for  help  of  both 
kinds. 

"But,  you  may  ask,  where  are  the  signs  of  this 
renaissance  of  the  Russian  people?  What  assurance 
have  you  that  these  people,  mainly  millions  of  peas- 
ants, dull,  ignorant,  and  brutalized,  can  make  a 
rational  use  of  their  freedom  after  they  get  it  ? 

"The  Russian  government  itself  has  answered  the 
first  question.  By  its  present  conduct,  at  once  timid 
and  hypocritical,  it  has  proved  both  its  own  weakness 
and  its  fear  of  the  progressive  movement,  which  it 
hopes  to  turn  aside  by  promises  and  postponements. 
By  allowing  the  calling  together  of  the  zemstvos,  the 
Russian  government  has  frankly  confessed  that  it 
has  not  strength  or  wit  enough  to  deal  with  all  the 
circumstances  and  events  that  in  these  days  make  up 
the  life  of  the  people.  The  shocks  that  absolutism 
is  receiving  on  all  sides  have  made  it  stagger  so  often 
that  it  has  lost  the  habit  of  standing  firm  on  its  feet. 
This  very  war  with  Japan  —  this  murder,  this  car- 
nage, this  suicide  of  the  Russian  people  —  was  it  not 
the  act  of  a  madman,  who,  seeing  an  abyss  opening 
under  his  feet,  tries  to  drag  everything  above  down 
into  it  ?  Think  of  all  the  sorrows,  atrocities,  and  losses 
resulting  from  this  war  —  a  war  that  nobody  needed, 
and  that  is  hated  and  despised  by  the  people,  and  then 
say  if  a  government  worthy  of  respect,  and  convinced 
of  its  own  righteousness  and  strength,  could  have 
rushed  into  it,  and  thus  revealed  to  the  world  all  its 
corruption,  ignorance,  and  contempt  for  its  people's 
happiness  ? 


116    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"We  see  Russia  not  only  unhappy,  rent  by  all 
possible  evils,  but  also  humiliated,  disgraced,  degraded, 
as  she  has  never  been  since  the  terrible  days  of  the 
Tartar  domination.  The  best  of  her  sons  are  being 
killed;  the  rest  of  her  population  is  being  completely 
ruined,  and  the  country  burdened  with  debt  for  cen- 
turies to  come,  the  odious  game  of  the  present  govern- 
ment thus  enslaving  future  generations. 

"After  this,  can  you  ask  whether  the  Russian  people 
could  manage  their  own  affairs  better  than  they  are 
managed  by  the  Czar  and  his  ministers?  More  than 
once  the  Russian  people,  as  a  whole,  have  shown 
themselves  capable  of  deciding  their  own  destiny  and 
of  making  their  own  history,  thanks  to  their  common 
sense  and  courage.  By  searching  the  past,  you  will 
find  that  it  was  these  same  despised  peasants  who, 
with  their  own  hands  and  on  their  own  initiative,  en- 
larged their  country  by  territories  such  as  Siberia, 
as  all  the  northern  part  of  European  Russia,  and  all 
the  lands  that  surround  the  Black  and  Caspian  Seas. 
It  was  the  peasants  who  saved  the  interests  of  their 
fatherland  in  1613,  when  our  great  country  was  rent 
between  aspirants  to  the  Muscovite  throne.  They 
showed  themselves  dignified  and  wise  at  the  time  of 
their  emancipation,  forty  years  ago,  waiting  patiently 
for  the  justice  of  the  Czar  to  give  them  a  share  of  the 
'holy  soil',  which  is  the  Russian  peasant's  only  wealth, 
his  only  means  of  subsistence.  The  people  were  much 
more  intelligent  than  the  Czar.  It  was  impossible 
for  him  to  understand,  as  they  did,  —  they  who  work, 
and  by  their  work  feed  the  whole  Russian  empire,  — 
that  unless  they  were  given  land  they  would  be  left 
without  their  only  means  of  getting  a  living,  while 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    117 

those  who  did  nothing  would  receive  the  land,  which 
they  would  not  know  what  to  do  with. 

"Afterwards,  when  the  different  districts  obtained 
the  right  to  have  their  zemstvos,  was  it  not  the  peas- 
ants who  showed  by  their  example  how  the  money  and 
other  resources  that  come  from  the  work  of  the  people 
ought  to  be  expended?  To  this  day,  the  two  peasant 
provinces  of  Viatka  and  Perm,  where  there  are  no 
nobles,  have  the  best  schools,  the  best  roads,  the  largest 
number  of  doctors,  of  libraries  and  of  technical  schools 
of  all  kinds,  and  even  a  newspaper  published  by  the 
zemstvos  on  purpose  for  the  peasants,  a  thing  found 
nowhere  else  in  Europe. 

"It  is  now  forty  years  since  the  emancipation  of 
the  serfs,  thirty  years  since  we  workers  among  the 
people  first  began  to  teach  them.  And  now  what  a 
difference !  The  peasants  have  improved  and  devel- 
oped till  they  are  hardly  recognizable.  Experience 
has  opened  the  eyes  of  our  suffering  country.  She 
no  longer  believes  in  her  Czar;  she  knows  what  he  is 
worth;  and,  conscious  of  her  own  strength  and  her 
ability  to  act  for  her  own  welfare,  she  is  asking  for 
freedom.  She  is  no  longer  willing  to  submit  blindly 
to  the  will  of  a  government  that  is  ignorant  and  hos- 
tile to  the  nation's  real  interests.  These  same  peas- 
ants, who  formerly  could  not  read,  or  understand  the 
state  of  things,  now  read  and  understand  perfectly 
the  books  and  pamphlets  that  we  distribute  among 
them  by  hundreds  of  thousands,  to  show  them  the  best 
way  to  get  rid  of  the  yoke  which  is  crushing  them, 
body  and  soul.  And  now  that  the  happy  time  has 
come  when  the  people  read  and  listen  to  us,  when  they 
welcome  our  literature,  our  advice,  and  our  presence, 


118    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

we  find  ourselves  still  confronted  by  Russia's  evil 
genius,  the  autocratic  government  which  persecutes 
everything  true,  which  destroys  everything  great. 
But  this  time  we  are  the  stronger.  The  people  are 
on  our  side,  and  we  must  serve  them,  at  whatever 
cost.  And  therefore,  feeling  that  the  time  of  deliver- 
ance is  near,  we  appeal  to  all  the  friends  of  freedom, 
saying,  '  Please  understand  us,  and  please  help  us !  * 

"We  say  it  with  the  more  confidence  because  we 
know  that  the  abolition  of  Russian  despotism  is  a 
question  which  closely  concerns  other  nations,  both  in 
Europe  and  in  America.  We  know,  as  you  also  know, 
what  the  fate  is  of  the  Armenians,  the  Poles,  the  Finns, 
the  Jews,  under  the  rule  of  Russian  absolutism,  and 
you  know  whether  their  fate  is  a  pleasant  one.  You 
know,  too,  that  the  Sultan,  and  all  other  monarchs 
inclined  to  despotism,  derive  their  strength  and  safety 
from  the  power  of  the  Czars,  who  always  try  to  main- 
tain the  authority  of  crowned  heads.  In  the  name  of 
justice  and  of  the  general  good,  I  entreat  you,  friends, 
to  help  us  as  you  can  and  as  much  as  you  can,  so  that 
we  may  see  our  immense  and  beautiful  country,  with 
its  kind-hearted  and  gifted  people,  free  and  civilized 
as  soon  as  possible." 

"A  great  ovation  followed  the  speech,  and  a  collec- 
tion was  taken. 

"  The  arrangements  for  the  meeting  had  been  made 
by  Meyer  Bloomfield.  He  was  ably  seconded  by  about 
a  score  of  the  best  young  men  among  the  settlement 
workers,  who  acted  as  ushers.  Mr.  Foulke  said  that 
he  had  attended  many  political  gatherings,  but  never 
one  so  enthusiastic. 

"Letters  wishing  success  to  the  meeting  were  re- 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    119 

ceived  from  Governor  Bates  of  Massachusetts  and 
from  several  labor  organizations. 

"At  the  close,  Madame  Breshkovsky  received  an- 
other ovation.  Hundreds  pressed  up  to  the  front  of 
the  platform,  reached  up  their  hands  to  clasp  hers,  and 
in  some  cases  lifted  up  their  children  to  greet  her. 
Even  those  of  us  who  had  been  familiar  with  Faneuil 
Hall  meetings  for  many  years  had  never  seen  such  a 
sight." 

Madame  Breshkovsky  addressed  various  other  meet- 
ings in  and  around  Boston,  and  spoke  at  Wellesley 
College. 

She  was  welcomed  by  her  own  countrypeople  with 
even  greater  enthusiasm.  In  Philadelphia,  according 
to  the  Philadelphia  North  American,  two  thousand 
Russian  men  and  women  made  her  the  object  of  "a 
demonstration  almost  unprecedented  in  America." 
At  the  close  of  her  address  in  New  Pennsylvania  Hall, 
"a  mighty  cheer  went  up" ;  the  people  rose  en  masse, 
hats  were  waved,  and  the  cheering  lasted  for  five 
minutes.  Then  the  audience  surged  toward  the 
platform,  took  the  aged  martyr  for  liberty  in  their 
arms,  and  for  nearly  an  hour  carried  her  around  the 
hall  on  their  shoulders  in  triumph,  shouting  and  sing- 
ing "Du  Biunshka"  till  they  could  shout  and  sing 
no  more.  Every  one  in  the  crowd  tried  to  reach 
Madame  Breshkovsky,  and  all  who  succeeded  em- 
braced her.  Her  clothing  was  nearly  torn  off,  and  the 
friends  who  had  got  up  the  meeting  feared  that  the 
zeal  of  her  admirers  might  cost  her  her  life.  These 
friends  waited  till  she  was  borne  near  the  platform, 
and  then  made  a  sudden  rush  and  took  her  away  from 
the  crowd.  Exhausted,  but  still  enthusiastic,  she  sat 


120    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

in  a  chair  behind  the  wings,  and  begged  to  be  allowed 
to  go  back  to  her  countrymen.  Again  and  again  the 
crowd  tried  to  storm  the  platform  and  reach  her,  and  it 
was  with  difficulty  they  were  made  to  understand  that 
for  her  own  sake  the  demonstration  ought  to  cease. 

In  New  York  City  she  had  had  an  enthusiastic 
reception  in  Cooper  Union,  attended  by  thousands. 
A  New  York  branch  of  the  Friends  of  Russian  Free- 
dom was  organized,  with  the  Reverend  Minot  J. 
Savage  as  president,  Professor  Robert  Erskine  Ely  as 
secretary,  and  a  long  list  of  distinguished  vice  presi- 
dents. 

In  January,  1905,  she  went  on  to  Chicago,  where 
again  she  had  a  great  reception.  Later  she  returned 
to  Boston  for  a  longer  visit. 

The  impression  that  she  made  in  private  was  even 
deeper  than  that  left  by  her  public  speeches.  Kel- 
logg Durland  wrote  in  the  Boston  Transcript: 

"To  look  upon  the  face  of  this  silver-haired  apostle 
is  like  receiving  a  benediction.  Her  outward  and 
inward  calm  are  superb.  Her  hands  are  beautiful  in 
their  delicacy  and  refinement,  despite  the  years  in 
Siberia.  Her  voice  is  low  and  sweet,  her  smile  win- 
ning and  childlike.  Only  her  eyes  betray  the  suffer- 
ings of  the  years.  In  repose  her  face  is  strong  like 
iron.  The  shadows  of  her  eyes  speak  of  deepest  pathos. 
We  sat  together  in  a  little  room  in  lower  New  York 
one  morning,  Madame  Breshkovsky,  Abe.  Cahan, 
the  Russian  novelist  and  editor  of  the  Forward,  Katz, 
I.  K.  Friedman,  and  myself.  Madame  Breshkovsky 
was  telling  us  her  wonderful  story.  She  spoke  quietly, 
yet  the  things  she  told  of  were  so  terrible  they  fairly 
made  our  heartstrings  quiver. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    121 

"Suddenly  there  came  a  sharp  knock  at  the  door, 
and  a  dark-eyed  man  of  middle  age  stepped  over  the 
threshold.  His  black  eyes  glistened  like  jewels  as  he 
started  toward  Madame  Breshkovsky.  He  spoke  a 
few  words  in  Russian,  recalling  an  incident  in  both 
their  lives,  and  with  an  exclamation  of  joy  she  stood 
up  and  threw  her  arms  about  him,  kissing  him  first 
on  one  cheek,  then  on  the  other.  They  had  last  met 
as  exiles  in  one  of  the  prisons  of  Siberia." 

Mrs.  L.  A.  Coonley  Ward  wrote  in  the  Chicago 
Commons  of  March,  1905 : 

"Not  many  days  ago  I  stepped  into  a  nursery. 
Four  little  children  from  two  to  nine  years  old  sat 
watching  a  large,  handsome,  plainly-dressed  woman 
with  short  gray  hair  combed  back  and  waving  over 
a  massive  head.  Her  brilliant  eyes  were  full  of  merri- 
ment as  she  told  the  story  of  a  wonderful  doll,  dramat- 
ically illustrating  its  accomplishments,  even  to  its 
dancing.  The  little  quartette  had  lost  the  sense  of 
everything  external  except  the  charming  story-teller 
and  her  fascinating  tale.  At  its  close  she  seated  her- 
self in  a  low  chair  in  the  center  of  the  group,  talking 
constantly,  most  entertainingly,  while  she  cut  and 
folded  paper  into  bewitching  shapes  —  cocks,  boats, 
baskets,  dolls,  following  in  quick  succession.  In  a 
few  minutes  the  shy  little  three-year-old  was  on  her 
lap,  and  the  conquest  of  the  children  was  complete. 

"The  story-teller  was  Madame  Catherine  Bresh- 
kovsky, the  Russian  exile. 

"How  has  she  come  through  her  terrible  experi- 
ence with  this  child-heart  fresh  within  her?  Her 
companions  in  prison  and  exile  are  dead,  or  live  with 
broken  health.  Many  were  made  insane  by  hard- 


122    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

ships  and  loneliness.  It  was  not  her  strong  physique 
alone  that  saved  her ;  it  was  this  child-heart,  compan- 
ioned with  a  vivid  imagination,  a  keen  sense  of  humor, 
and  a  noble  faith  in  the  future. 

"*How  is  it,  dear  Madame,  that  after  all  these 
cruel  years  you  are  without  a  touch  of  bitterness?' 

"'Ah,  it  is  because  I  believe  in  evolution.  I  am 
sure  they  act  according  to  their  light,  as  I  act  accord- 
ing to  mine/ 

'  You  are  sustained  by  a  great  hope  ? ' 

"'By  great  hopes,'  she  answered,  while  into  her 
wonderful  eyes  there  entered  depths  born  of  the  world's 
ages  of  pain. 

"Madame  Breshkovsky  is  an  altogether  delightful 
companion.  She  is  unselfish,  interested  in  others, 
fond  of  books,  music,  and  pictures,  so  that  she  becomes 
at  once  a  part  of  the  home  life.  She  is  impressive  in 
her  simplicity,  hopeful,  buoyant,  sometimes  even 
gay,  a  very  human  woman,  and  a  winner  of  admiration 
and  of  love  from  every  one  who  comes  in  contact  with 
her  rare,  beautiful  personality. 

"Sitting  in  the  twilight  by  the  fire,  with  her  shin- 
ing eyes,  her  noble  face,  her  melodious  voice,  she  seems 
a  splendid  sibyl  bringing  to  our  modern  materialism 
the  simplicity,  the  poetry,  the  devotion  of  the  mighty 
past,  with  its  primitive  virtues  and  its  prophetic 
inspiration." 

Madame  Breshkovsky  soon  grew  sufficiently  accus- 
tomed to  speaking  English  to  make  addresses  in  that 
language,  with  only  mistakes  enough  to  add  piquancy 
to  her  talk. 


CHAPTER  X 

MADAME  BRESHKOVSKY  found  an  especially  sym- 
pathetic welcome  in  the  social  settlements.  She 
stayed  for  some  time  at  the  Nurses'  Settlement  at 
265  Henry  Street,  New  York,  at  Denison  House  in 
Boston,  and  at  Hull  House  in  Chicago,  and  at  each 
she  left  behind  her  a  circle  of  strong  friends.  Miss 
Helena  S.  Dudley,  who  was  then  at  the  head  of  Deni- 
son House,  said  that  no  six  years  of  her  life  had  been 
worth  so  much  to  her  as  the  six  weeks  that  Madame 
Breshkovsky  spent  under  her  roof.  Miss  Lillian  D. 
Wald,  Jane  Addams,  Miss  Ellen  Starr,  Professor 
Robert  Erskine  Ely,  Arthur  Bullard,  and  Kellogg 
Durland  were  among  those  who  became  warm  and 
lasting  friends. 

She  met  Mrs.  Julia  Ward  Howe,  and  the  two  noble 
old  ladies  took  to  each  other  at  once.  She  called 
Mrs.  Howe  "une  vraie  citoyenne"  Mrs.  Howe  in- 
vited Madame  Breshkovsky  to  her  home  to  lunch, 
and  by  way  of  welcome,  sat  down  to  the  piano  and 
struck  up  the  Russian  National  Anthem.  Madame 
Breshkovsky  put  her  hands  to  her  ears,  with  a  cry. 
She  explained  to  her  astonished  hostess  that  that 
tune  was  always  played  in  honor  of  the  Czar,  and 
that  the  revolutionists  held  it  in  horror. 

Emma  Goldman  did  her  utmost  to  help  Madame 

123 


124    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

Breshkovsky,  although  their  opinions  were  at  opposite 
poles,  Miss  Goldman,  as  an  anarchist,  believing  that 
there  should  be  no  government,  while  Madame  Bresh- 
kovsky, as  a  Socialist,  believed  that  the  functions  of 
government  should  be  greatly  extended,  and  should 
include  the  ownership  and  operation  of  the  railroads, 
factories,  and  mines. 

Madame  Breshkovsky  conceived  a  very  tender 
friendship  for  me.  Perhaps  this  good  fortune  befell 
me  in  part  because  of  my  long-standing  interest  in 
the  Russian  question.  My  parents  and  I  had  tried 
to  help  Boris  Gorow  when  he  lectured  in  this  country 
on  the  iniquities  of  the  Russian  Government  somewhere 
about  1884.  I  had  been  a  member  of  the  first  society 
of  American  Friends  of  Russian  Freedom,  organized 
in  1891,1  after  Stepniak's  visit  to  this  country.  The 
society  never  had  a  president;  but  it  was  formed 
chiefly  through  Mrs.  Howe's  efforts,  and  often  met 
at  her  house.  For  some  years  it  did  active  work, 
largely  through  the  endeavors  of  its  devoted  secretary 
and  treasurer,  Edmund  Noble  and  Francis  J.  Garrison. 
The  society  led  the  movement  against  the  proposed 
extradition  treaty  with  Russia,  and  obtained  from 
Governor  Russell  of  Massachusetts  the  appointment 
of  a  relief  committee  during  the  great  Russian  famine. 
A  monthly  journal,  Free  Russia,  was  published  for 
several  years,  with  Mr.  Noble  as  editor,  and  L.  Golden- 
berg  as  manager.1  It  was  finally  discontinued  for 
lack  of  financial  support,  and  the  society's  work  was 
gradually  taken  over  by  sympathizers  in  New  York. 

Some  years  after  this  organization  had  gone  out  of 
existence,  the  reading  of  Tolstoy's  "Resurrection" 
1  See  Appendix. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    125 

impressed  me  afresh  with  the  need  that  something 
should  be  done  to  better  the  terrible  conditions  de- 
scribed. The  author  speaks  of  a  Russian  official  who 
wants  to  practise  some  piece  of  tyranny  on  the  political 
prisoners,  but  refrains  because  he  fears  that  the  matter 
may  get  into  the  foreign  newspapers.  It  is  a  maxim 
in  war,  "Always  do  the  thing  to  which  your  adversary 
particularly  objects."  It  occurred  to  me  that  it 
might  be  useful  to  spread  news  about  the  misdeeds  of 
the  Russian  government  through  the  American  press. 
A  new  society  of  the  American  Friends  of  Russian 
Freedom  was  organized  for  this  purpose,  with  the 
Hon.  William  Dudley  Foulke  of  Indiana  as  president. 
George  Kennan  gave  his  services  in  translating  the 
Russian  news,  and  I  manifolded  it  and  sent  it  out. 
This  society  was  merely  a  news  bureau,  and  after  a 
while  it  too  came  to  an  end.  But  it  was  still  in  nominal 
existence  at  the  time  of  Madame  Breshkovsky's  visit 
to  America,  and  was  able  to  give  her  some  help.  A 
much  better  and  stronger  society  of  Friends  of  Russian 
Freedom,  with  headquarters  in  New  York,  was  organ- 
ized later. 

But  the  most  helpful  of  all  the  friends  whom  Madame 
Breshkovsky  made  in  this  country  was  Mrs.  Isabel  C. 
Barrows,  the  wife  of  the  Hon.  Samuel  J.  Barrows, 
secretary  of  the  New  York  Prison  Association  and 
National  Prison  Commissioner.  After  Mr.  Barrows's 
death,  Madame  Breshkovsky,  then  in  exile  at  Kirensk 
in  Siberia,  wrote  the  following  account  of  her  first 
meeting  with  these  good  friends  : 

"It  was  toward  the  end  of  1904.  I  was  in  New 
York,  with  no  acquaintances,  quite  lost  in  that  city 
which  was  wholly  strange  to  me.  I  could  hardly 


126    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

speak  English,  and  had  great  difficulty  in  finding  my 
way  about  that  modern  Babylon,  that  ant-hill  of 
languages,  nationalities,  customs,  and  religions. 

"We  Russians  are  inherently  timid,  inclined  to  dis- 
trust our  own  abilities,  our  own  knowledge;  hence, 
when  we  find  ourselves  in  a  strange  environment,  we 
are  filled  with  uncertainty,  and  our  wish  for  a  point 
d'appui,  a  person,  a  circle,  a  benevolent  institution, 
increases  because  of  the  embarrassment  felt  by  a 
person  who  is  not  sure  of  his  ground.  That  was  just 
my  case  when  I  arrived  in  New  York.  In  spite  of 
the  large  number  of  immigrants  who  came  to  meet 
me  in  the  kindest  and  most  affectionate  way,  I  needed 
to  make  the  acquaintance  of  the  real  Americans.  I 
fancied  that  to  impress  a  society  accustomed  to  respect 
people  in  proportion  to  their  wealth  and  outward  ac- 
complishments, it  would  take  much  greater  gifts 
than  mine ;  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  have  a  great 
reputation,  and  be  able  to  carry  one's  self  on  the 
platform  in  a  masterly  manner  and  with  full  assurance. 

"Alas !  brought  up  in  Russia,  where  every  free  word 
is  forbidden,  and  having  passed  all  my  youth  on  my 
parents'  estate,  under  a  rather  strict  and  serious  r6- 
gime,  educated  in  the  habit  of  keeping  a  close  watch 
over  myself,  I  was  haunted  by  the  thought  of  my  own 
imperfections,  the  smallness  of  my  knowledge,  my 
total  lack  of  talent.  Although  conscious  of  my  inner 
power,  and  longing  to  act,  and  to  spread  my  faith 
and  my  ideas,  I  felt  bashful  about  appearing  before 
an  unknown  public,  and  had  no  hope  that  I  could  do 
as  well  as  I  desired. 

"So  imagine  my  embarrassment  when  my  friends, 
the  immigrants,  proposed  to  introduce  me  to  an  Amer- 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    127 

ican  family  occupying  an  official  position  and  enjoying 
a  high  reputation !  Nevertheless,  as  I  had  my  own 
mission,  which  was  dear  to  me,  and  which  I  wished 
with  all  my  soul  to  serve,  I  made  an  effort  over  myself. 

"When  I  rang  the  bell  at  Mr.  Barrows's  office  at 
135  East  15th  Street,  great  was  my  surprise  to  see  two 
young  women,  modestly  and  simply  dressed,  writing 
and  casting  up  accounts  before  long  tables,  evidently 
engaged  in  serious  work,  but  not  at  all  'businesslike.' 
Their  homelike  dress,  their  quiet  and  tranquil  air, 
without  affectation  or  constraint,  upset  my  ideas  of 
the  office  of  a  man  of  business.  It  took  me  some  time 
to  realize  that  an  American's  office  could  be  carried 
on  like  a  family,  where  not  only  did  the  regular  fre- 
quenters of  the  place  feel  as  if  they  were  at  home, 
but  where  all  comers  were  looked  upon  as  possible 
friends. 

"I  did  not  yet  feel  sure,  however,  of  being  welcome 
in  this  inner  sanctum,  where  a  group  of  associates 
were  working  together  for  their  common  aim.  Per- 
haps they  would  not  like  to  be  disturbed.  But  I  had 
only  to  pass  through  a  library  and  enter  another  little 
office  to  see  that  the  two  ladies  who  were  writing 
there  were  not  displeased  by  my  coming.  The  elder, 
who  was  Mrs.  Barrows  herself,  rose  to  meet  me  with- 
out the  least  sign  of  surprise  or  impatience.  It  was  as 
if  she  had  expected  me,  or  as  if  she  were  so  accustomed 
to  meet  all  comers,  at  all  hours,  that  no  apparition 
could  take  her  unprepared.  Nor  did  the  young  lady 
show  any  surprise  or  curiosity  upon  seeing  a  person  so 
awkward  as  I,  arrayed  more  like  an  Indian  than  a 
European.  All  this  convinced  me  of  the  high  humanity 
of  the  master  of  the  office,  and  I  thanked  God  in  my 


128    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

soul  for  having  prepared  for  me  a  reception  so  simple 
and  friendly.  My  relations  with  Mrs.  Barrows, 
thanks  to  her  benevolence  and  wisdom,  were  of  in- 
valuable assistance  to  me.  It  was  she  who  translated 
my  writings  from  French  into  English;  it  was  she 
who  taught  me  to  pronounce  the  sounds  in  the  English 
language  that  are  hardest  for  a  foreigner;  it  was  she 
who  guided  me  in  regard  to  my  later  visits  and  ac- 
quaintances; and  it  was  she  who  introduced  me  on 
the  platform,  at  the  first  meeting  in  which  I  took 
part.  In  a  word,  before  I  had  the  honor  of  being 
presented  to  other  distinguished  Americans,  interested 
in  the  cause  that  had  brought  me  to  the  United  States, 
it  was  from  Isabel  C.  Barrows  that  I  received  as  it 
were  my  baptism  at  my  official  entrance  into  American 
society.  It  was  at  the  home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Barrows 
that  I  met  their  daughter  Mabel,  now  Mrs.  Mussey. 
It  was  there  that  I  learned  to  know  Arthur  Bullard, 
whose  friendship  will  be  mine  forever.  It  was  there 
that  I  grew  better  acquainted  with  Alice  Stone  Black- 
well,  whose  friendship,  incomparable  for  its  constancy 
and  tenderness,  has  been  a  sweet  sunbeam  to  me 
during  the  long  days  of  an  interminable  exile. 

"When  I  saw  Mr.  Barrows,  I  was  struck  at  once 
by  his  tall,  handsome  figure,  straight  and  graceful  in 
spite  of  his  age;  his  serious  face,  wearing  the  stamp 
of  habitual  benevolence,  a  benevolence  inseparable 
from  his  exquisite  nature.  He  made  an  extraordinary 
impression  on  me  as  one  who  would  bring  peace  and 
love  into  the  hearts  of  those  who  knew  him  well. 

"I  admired  his  beautiful  face  without  ever  daring 
to  say  how  much  good  his  gentle  look  did  me.  And 
my  timidity  lasted  throughout  the  four  months  during 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION     129 

which  I  had  the  pleasure  of  visiting  the  Barrows 
family.  Sitting  around  a  large  table,  spread  with 
the  frugal  lunch  prepared  by  the  skilful  hands  of  Mrs. 
Barrows  herself  in  the  next  room,  over  a  gas  stove,  we 
used  to  talk,  each  of  the  subject  that  interested  him 
most;  while  Mr.  Barrows,  having  finished  before 
the  rest,  walked  up  and  down  the  library,  listening, 
stopping  sometimes  when  any  words  attracted  his 
special  attention.  It  was  only  later  that  I  learned 
that  he  valued  what  I  said,  and  that  the  little  he 
knew  of  me  had  made  a  deep  impression  on  him. 
How  much  I  regret  now  that  I  was  not  brave,  simple, 
and  frank  enough  to  speak  to  a  man  the  remembrance 
of  whom  has  lived  in  my  heart  for  seven  years,  whose 
image  is  still  fresh  in  my  mind,  and  whose  portrait, 
in  the  little  book  'A  Moral  Citadel',  is  a  refreshment 
to  me  in  the  hours  when  I  long  to  find  myself  in  the 
company  of  the  highest  minds  !" 

Mrs.  Barrows,  through  her  large  acquaintance,  was 
able  to  furnish  Madame  Breshkovsky  with  many 
valuable  introductions,  and  she  helped  to  make  her 
work  widely  known  through  articles  in  the  press. 
She  and  I  also  acted  as  interpreters,  on  various  oc- 
casions when  she  spoke  in  French. 

Madame  Breshkovsky  not  only  gave  her  American 
friends  a  great  deal  of  fresh  and  first-hand  knowledge 
about  conditions  in  Russia,  and  especially  about  the 
peasants,  but  she  enkindled  courage  and  idealism 
wherever  she  went.  She  made  the  same  deep  impres- 
sion upon  the  educated  and  the  ignorant,  the  rich  and 
the  poor. 

She  was  convinced  that  revolution  in  Russia  was 
actually  at  the  door.  "Our  workers  are  already 


130    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

400,000  strong,"  she  said.  "Day  and  night  they 
work.  In  place  of  sleep,  and  warmth,  and  food,  the 
dream  of  freedom  ! " 

She  resisted  all  persuasions  to  stay  in  this  country 
and  carry  on  her  work  from  a  place  of  safety.  Kellogg 
Durland  attended  a  small  gathering  of  her  friends 
in  New  York  City,  on  the  East  Side,  a  few  days  before 
she  went  back.  He  described  the  scene  in  the  Boston 
Transcript  of  March  29,  1905.  After  going  up  many 
flights  of  stairs,  he  found  the  small  rooms  crowded  to 
the  doors. 

"'Baboushka  is  in  the  inner  room  alone.  You  may 
go  in,'  a  messenger  told  me.  As  I  pushed  to  the  door, 
I  saw  Ernest  Crosby,  John  Cory  ell,  Katz,  and  a  number 
of  the  New  York  radical  ring,  Tolstoyans,  Socialists, 
anarchists,  idealists,  and  dreamers  of  every  shade. 
She  talked  to  me  of  America  and  the  Americans  she 
had  met ;  of  her  plans  for  the  future,  her  bright  hopes, 
and  calm  outlook  upon  her  storm-swept  country. 

"*I  see  America  a  great  plain,'  she  said,  'and  all  the 
people  running  about  as  little  children  —  little  children 
without  a  professor.  You  have  nowhere  a  great 
leader.  Everybody  is  bright  and  intelligent,  but  no 
big  brain.  In  America  there  is  too  much  specialism  — 
too  many  people  expert  in  one  line,  not  enough  who 
know  many  things.  Your  writers  are  too  narrow. 
Write  books  that  millions  of  people  will  read,  but 
write  about  important  things.  If  I  lived  in  America, 
I  would  go  from  city  to  city  and  village  to  village, 
teaching  and  preaching.  And  I  would  write.  The 
American  people  like  poetry,  but  they  also  ask  logic 
and  consistency.  When  you  write,  be  always  logical, 
never  contradict  yourself,  and  be  poetic  in  expression. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    131 

Then  many  people  will  read,  and  your  influence  will 
be  great.  That  is  what  I  say  to  all  young  men  in 
America. 

"'Yes,  America  has  been  very  good  to  me.  But  I 
cannot  stay  longer.  Some  day  I  shall  come  back  — 
perhaps  in  five  years,  when  Russia  is  free.' 

"The  last  days  in  America  were  full  and  memorable 
—  the  farewell  meetings,  the  last  articles  to  write,  the 
final  instructions  to  the  bodies  in  this  part  of  the  world 
that  are  working  for  the  cause  in  Russia.  No  one 
knew  when  she  was  to  sail.  The  exact  date  was  kept 
from  all  save  her  most  intimate  friends.  There  were 
but  four  at  the  steamer  —  Miss  Blackwell,  Mrs. 
Barrows,  Professor  Ely,  and  myself." 

Two  friends  sailed  with  her.  One  had  been  for 
years  a  political  exile,  had  escaped  from  Siberia,  and 
reached  America  with  health  shattered  for  life.  Physi- 
cally a  wreck,  but  still  strong  of  heart,  he  was  going 
back  to  renew  the  fight.  The  other  was  a  young 
woman,  the  daughter  of  a  well-known  Russian  family, 
who  had  spent  two  years  in  America,  earning  her  own 
living  and  fitting  herself  to  be  a  teacher  among  the 
Russian  peasants.  She  was  going  back,  with  the  full 
knowledge  that  three  months  was  the  average  length 
of  time  that  the  propagandists  were  able  to  work 
before  being  caught  and  sent  to  prison  or  exile. 

"Are  you  willing  to  sacrifice  your  freedom  for 
twenty  years,  perhaps  forever,  for  three  months  of 
activity?"  she  was  asked. 

"Certainly,"  she  answered  quietly.  "It  is  only  by 
many  persons  doing  this  that  our  poor  people  will 
ever  learn,  and  be  free.  What  else  can  we  do  ?  Many 
go  to  Siberia;  why  not  I?" 


132    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

As  the  three  stood  together  on  the  deck,  Madame 
Breshkovsky  in  the  centre  with  her  leonine  head,  and 
the  other  two  on  either  hand,  they  seemed  to  Durland 
a  type  of  the  past,  the  present,  and  the  future  of  the 
revolution. 

Madame  Breshkovsky  took  back  with  her  about 
$10,000  for  the  cause,  most  of  it  contributed  by  the 
very  poor  Russians  living  in  the  large  cities;  and 
through  her  influence  Arthur  Bullard  and  a  number 
of  other  young  Americans  went  over  to  Russia  and 
took  part  in  the  actual  fighting. 


CHAPTER  XI 

MADAME  BRESHKOVSKY'S  expectation  of  a  revolution 
in  Russia  was  almost  fulfilled  in  1905.  The  great 
general  strikes  throughout  the  country,  and  the  unan- 
imous demand  for  a  change  in  the  old  regime,  terri- 
fied the  Czar  into  granting  a  Douma  and  promising 
freedom  of  speech  and  of  the  press,  with  other  urgently 
needed  reforms.  It  is  now  a  matter  of  history  how  all 
those  promises  were  broken.  The  Czar  had  at  first 
granted  suffrage  to  the  men  of  Russia  on  a  fairly  liberal 
basis.  The  first  Douma  chosen  was  too  radical,  and 
he  narrowed  the  suffrage.  The  second  Douma  was 
still  too  radical,  and  he  narrowed  the  suffrage  again. 
Even  after  the  electorate  had  been  so  changed  as  to 
make  the  Douma  representative  only  of  the  rich,  it 
was  allowed  no  real  power.  Its  decisions  were  con- 
stantly overridden  by  the  Council  of  the  Empire. 
The  autocracy  was  preserved  intact.  Freedom  of 
speech  and  of  the  press  were  soon  taken  away ;  the 
prisons  were  again  crowded  with  the  country's  best 
men  and  women ;  and  the  procession  of  political  exiles 
to  Siberia  continued,  with  ever  increasing  numbers. 
Naturally,  the  revolutionists  resumed  their  work. 

Through  the  treachery  of  Azeff,  Madame  Bresh- 
kovsky  and  that  other  veteran  in  the  cause  of  Russian 
freedom,  Doctor  Nicholas  Tchaykovsky,  were  arrested 

133 


134    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

in  1908.  They  were  kept  for  a  long  time  in  the  fortress 
of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul,  without  trial.  Doctor  Tchay- 
kovsky  was  finally  released  on  bail,  through  the  efforts 
of  his  friends,  among  whom  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Barrows  and 
the  editors  of  the  Outlook  were  especially  active.  But 
Madame  Breshkovsky  was  still  held  in  the  fortress, 
and  word  came  secretly  that  she  was  failing  and  likely 
to  die.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Barrows  were  to  sail  for  Europe 
in  the  spring  of  1909,  to  meet  the  International  Prison 
Commission  in  Paris.  It  was  suggested  that  Mrs. 
Barrows  should  go  on  in  advance,  and  try  to  get  Ma- 
dame Breshkovsky  admitted  to  bail.  Mr.  Barrows 
said :  "  If  you  can  help  Baboushka,  go.  I  would  lay 
down  my  own  life  for  her,  and  think  it  well  spent." 

Mrs.  Barrows  sailed  in  March.  She  had  barely 
arrived  in  Petrograd  when  she  received  a  cablegram 
announcing  her  husband's  dangerous  illness.  She 
hurried  home,  but  did  not  arrive  in  time  to  see  him  in 
life.  A  month  later,  she  started  again  for  Russia, 
provided  with  all  sorts  of  letters  from  influential 
Americans  to  dignitaries  on  the  other  side. 

Although  she  almost  went  on  her  knees  to  the  Premier, 
Stolypin,  she  could  not  get  leave  to  see  Madame 
Breshkovsky.  It  was  not  until  two  years  later  that 
Baboushka  even  learned  that  this  faithful  friend  had 
twice  visited  Petrograd  in  her  behalf. 

Mrs.  Barrows  found  that  a  request  for  a  prisoner's 
release  on  bail  must  be  made  by  a  blood  relation. 
Madame  Breshkovsky's  son  would  have  been  the  ob- 
vious person  to  make  it.  He  had  become  a  successful 
novelist;  but  he  was  still  without  any  sympathy  for 
revolutionary  ideas.  He  was  mortified  that  his  mother 
should  be  in  prison  as  a  revolutionist,  and  he  was  not 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    135 

willing  to  sign  the  application.  Mrs.  Barrows  thought 
of  appealing  to  an  aged  sister  of  Madame  Breshkovsky's, 
who  was  still  living ;  but  a  Russian  prince,  a  friend  of 
Tchaykovsky's,  offered  to  use  his  influence  with  the 
son.  He  invited  him  to  dinner,  told  him  of  the  earnest 
efforts  that  Mrs.  Barrows  was  making,  and  said  to  him 
in  substance :  "  To-day  your  mother  is  old ;  and  here 
is  another  old  lady  who  has  twice  crossed  the  ocean  for 
her  sake;  yet  you,  her  own  son,  will  not  even  lift  a 
hand  to  help  her."  The  son's  feelings  were  touched ; 
perhaps  he  was  a  little  ashamed.  At  any  rate,  he 
signed  the  request  for  bail ;  but  it  was  refused. 

He  went  to  see  his  mother  in  prison.  She  wrote  him 
the  following  letters  while  in  the  fortress. 

She  was  allowed  to  write  on  no  personal  affairs  save 
her  health ;  to  discuss  no  politics ;  to  make  no  reference 
to  the  government ;  to  speak  of  no  recent  publications, 
etc.,  etc. 

"January  22,  1909. 

"My  dear  N :  I  was  very  much  pleased  to  see  you, 
and  I  thank  you  for  coming.  I  wish  that  I  could  always 
see  you  looking  so  well.  I  appreciate  the  need  of  unity 
between  soul  and  body  when  one  has  singleness  of 
purpose,  and  I  know  very  well  what  a  tremendously 
deep  break  is  made  in  one's  life  even  by  a  single  crisis. 
It  may  alter  a  man's  life  completely.  Preserve  your- 
self, then,  from  every  base  and  unwholesome  thing. 
Let  pure  motives  only  enter  into  all  your  actions.  Good 
motives  beautify  the  human  being,  and  convey  to  the 
face  a  beautiful  expression.  I  wish  you  success,  my 
dear  child,  in  everything  that  leads  to  your  perfection. 
Kiss  the  others  for  me,  and  tell  them  my  joy  in  seeing 
you. 


136    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"I  imagine  myself  sitting  with  you  in  your  room  while 
you  are  relating  to  me  what  you  have  seen,  what  you 
have  heard,  what  you  have  in  your  mind  to  do.  At  first 
I  listen  to  you  patiently,  and  then  I  begin  to  argue.  Do 
you  know,  I  never  could  read  or  listen  to  descriptions 
of  anything  adverse  to  my  soul,  especially  the  horrid 
things  which  base  people  do  to  each  other,  even  if  the 
horrid  things  do  not  have  fatal  results.  I  have  been 
reading  Dickens  for  the  first  time,  and  I  am  obliged 
to  skip  whole  pages.  While  reading  I  often  say  to 
myself,  'Oh,  this  happened  a  thousand  years  ago,  and 
there  is  nothing  of  the  kind  now,'  but  still  I  cannot  read 
the  descriptions  of  horrors.  I  am  afraid  that  in  the 
books  you  write  I  shall  have  to  skip  some  pages  too, 
but  I  cannot  help  it.  I  will  try  to  understand  the  plot 
without  reading  the  horrors. 

"  Do  you  know  what  perfectly  delighted  me  ?  '  Ivan- 
hoe.'  That  is  a  novel  of  novels  !  If  all  historical  novels 
were  written  in  that  way,  they  would  be  marvels. 
Still,  I  skipped  nearly  four  chapters  concerning  the 
violence  in  the  land.  But  it  is  a  wonderful  book.  I 
think  it  would  pay  very  well  to  publish  a  good  transla- 
tion, with  illustrations.  It  is  capital  reading  for 
youth,  and  delightful  for  grown-ups.  Just  imagine,  I 
was  always  afraid  of  Walter  Scott,  because  your  grand- 
mother inspired  me  with  mistrust  of  him. 

"Well,  I  wish  you  good  health,  my  dear.  Protect 
yourself  from  influenza,  which  attacked  me  as  the 
autumn  fell.  I  embrace  you  and  bless  you." 

"March  2,  1909. 

"My  dear  N:  Soon  it  will  be  two  months  since  I 
saw  you,  and  still  I  have  no  books  from  you.  Probably 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    137 

the  time  will  soon  come  for  your  going  away,  and  we 
shall  not  see  each  other  any  more.  I  constantly  recall 
our  interview,  and  always  regret  that  I  could  not  see 
you  clearly,  but  I  remember  every  word  of  our  con- 
versation. What  you  said  of  the  Lake  of  Geneva  often 
comes  to  my  memory  —  that  its  beauty  has  been  worn 
out  by  many  commonplace  pictures.  But  only  think, 
my  dear  child,  how  everything  that  is  beautiful  in 
nature  is  'tainted'  in  that  way.  Shall  we  blame  the 
sky,  the  stars,  the  sea,  the  mountains,  because  they 
have  been  sung  by  so  many  poets  and  drawn  by  so 
many  pencils,  for  so  many  ages?  Shall  we  therefore 
cease  to  love  them  ?  Shall  we  think  that  it  is  not  be- 
coming for  us  to  look  on  the  Milo  goddess  with  admira- 
tion, simply  because  there  are  so  many  photographs  of 
her  on  every  street  corner?  No,  my  friend,  this  is  a 
prejudice,  and  it  often  prevents  us  from  taking  pleasure 
in  things  which  deserve  to  be  enjoyed.  If  it  were 
true,  there  would  be  nothing  left  on  the  globe  for  a 
refined  taste,  because  the  crowd  has  looked  upon  all 
these  things,  on  all  sides  and  in  all  sorts  of  places.  The 
sense  of  beauty  lies  in  ourselves,  and  when  it  is  strongly 
developed  —  that  is,  when  we  are  capable  of  noticing 
and  appreciating  the  very  slightest  feature  of  beauty  — 
then  everything  that  excites  admiration  in  the  crowd 
seems  to  us  still  more  beautiful  and  more  wonderful. 

"It  is  another  thing  to  prefer  one  kind  of  beauty  to 
another.  For  instance,  however  picturesque  and  orig- 
inal Spaniards  are,  I  never  should  prefer  them  to  the 
French,  because  the  creative  spirit  of  the  hidalgos  and 
of  the  French  people  stands  as  one  to  a  hundred  in  ability 
to  create  in  the  spheres  of  science  and  of  art.  And  the 
Frenchman  shares  the  fruits  of  his  researches  so  willingly 


138    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

with  others  that  his  homeland  attracts  to  itself  the 
hearts  and  the  affections  of  all  other  people.  Believe 
me,  my  dear,  Paris  is  so  thickly  populated  with  for- 
eigners, not  because  life  there  is  so  gay,  but  chiefly 
because  one  can  live  there  so  freely  and  so  usefully. 
Every  one  feels  himself  at  home,  and  he  has  the  right 
to  everything  that  has  been  accumulated  by  ages  of 
labor,  of  genius,  of  talent. 

"I  should  like  it  very  much  if  you  would  take 
Madame  N.  to  the  Lake  of  Geneva  and  go  with  her  to 
the  small  village  of  C.,  near  the  Castle  of  Chillon,  with 
the  white  mountains  in  the  distance  looking  into  the 
blue  water  at  your  feet  —  those  white  mountains 
whose  summits  melt  into  the  transparent  air.  Oh, 
that  mountain  air,  so  full  of  health !  When  I  saw  this 
picture  for  the  first  time,  I  held  my  breath. 

"Au  re voir,  my  dear  child.  Come  soon  again.  You 
can  get  permission  for  two  or  three  interviews.  I 
embrace  you  and  kiss  your  hah*." 

"April  2. 

"My  dear  Friend  :  I  should  very  much  like  to  know 
how  you  are.  When  I  received  your  letter,  I  was  sur- 
prised at  your  change  of  handwriting,  but  from  the 
first  word  I  understood  what  had  happened.  Such  a 
healthy,  vigorous  man  to  look  at  to  be  ill  in  bed  !  One 
thing  consoled  me,  that  there  is  somebody  who  writes 
for  you :  it  means  that  you  are  not  quite  alone. 

"I  was  waiting  to  see  you  arrive,  but  you  did  not 
appear,  and  I  lost  hope.  ^At  last  they  said,  'Come,' 
and  I  went  to  meet  you.  As  I  was  passing  the  clock 
I  saw  that  it  was  a  quarter  before  twelve,  and  I  men- 
tally reproached  you  for  coming  so  late,  and  I  walked 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    139 

briskly  in  order  to  look  upon  you  sooner.  But  you 
looked  ill.  There  is  nothing  more  dangerous  than  to 
take  cold  with  influenza.  My  dear,  you  ought  not  to 
trifle  with  your  health.  It  is  a  great  blessing,  and  its 
absence  spoils  life.  Give  my  thanks  to  the  one  who 
writes  for  you,  and  be  sure  that  I  did  not  forget  you 
those  fifteen  days  while  you  lay  ill. 

"I  intend  in  our  next  interview  to  speak  less  and 
listen  more.  You  know  that  I  know  nothing  about 
your  life.  I  therefore  ask  you  to  prepare  beforehand 
a  concise,  and  as  full  as  possible,  story  of  your  life,  of 
your  quarters,  whether  you  live  alone  or  with  some  one, 
what  your  surroundings  are,  how  your  time  is  spent, 
what  you  are  writing  now,  what  interests  you  very 
much,  what  your  plans  are.  I  am  prepared  to  keep 
silent  for  the  twenty  minutes. 

"Now  I  wish  to  tell  you,  as  a  lover  of  art,  that  it  is 
quite  worth  while  to  see  the  picture  gallery  of  Helsing- 
fors.  The  Finns  have  skill,  and  their  painting  is  original 
in  execution  as  well  as  in  subject.  Folk-lore,  the  life 
of  the  people,  and  their  traditions  supply  rich  material 
for  the  artists.  It  is  a  country  worthy  of  study. 

"If  you  wish  to  amuse  me,  my  dear,  find  me  a  book 
of  travels  describing  different  countries  and  epochs, 
with  illustrations.  It  would  be  better  if  it  were  a  work 
unknown  to  me,  but  anything  that  has  appeared  within 
ten  or  fifteen  years  will  do,  so  long  as  it  is  well  written 
and  has  plenty  of  pictures;  but  it  must  be  without 
intrigues  and  cruelties. 

"What  Englishmen  are  writing  now?  What  are 
they  giving  the  public  ?  You  make  me  laugh  with  the 
question  whether  I  '  follow  the  news ' !  My  dear,  I  am 
entirely  in  the  position  of  those  fabulous  creatures 


140    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

that  have  been  stolen  away  and  are  kept  living  in  such 
places  that  even  the  ravens  and  the  wolves  cannot  peep 
in.  Besides  my  four  walls  I  see  nothing,  and  hear  noth- 
ing besides  the  ringing  of  church  bells.  My  past  was 
hedged  in  with  all  sorts  of  limitations,  but  such  limita- 
tions as  these  I  never  experienced  before.  It  is  well 
that  this  happened  towards  my  old  age,  when  a  large 
store  of  impressions  and  observations  has  been  laid 
away  in  my  memory.  My  whole  past  life  appears  before 
me  as  a  tremendous  school  in  which  I  pass  from  class 
to  class.  How  many  classes  are  still  left,  God  only 
knows !  Life  is  a  great  teacher  for  all  who  wish  to 
learn,  and  he  is  fortunate  who  gets  on  to  the  proper 
road  to  learning,  otherwise  one  may  go  through  life 
without  learning  anything  or  thinking  anything.  The 
majority  live  in  that  way,  and,  alas !  no  one  helps 
them.  But  he  who  knows  how  interesting  and  how 
blessed  it  is  to  know  is  bound  to  teach  others.  Ah, 
my  dear,  I  begin  to  preach! 

"I  embrace  you  warmly.  Give  my  greetings  to  all 
relatives  and  friends." 

"April  27. 

"  My  dear  N :  You  told  me  that  in  about  a  fort- 
night you  would  come  again.  I  should  wait  for  you 
quite  patiently  if  I  were  sure  that  you  are  well.  The 
weather  is  wretched,  and  I  know  you  ought  not  to 
expose  yourself. 

"  Have  you  ever  read  what  Lessing  has  written  about 
the  Laocoon?  Having  examined  the  history  of  this 
work  of  art,  Lessing  has  devoted  a  great  deal  of  time 
and  study  to  it.  The  article  is  full  of  artistic  taste  and 
a  deep  understanding  of  the  meaning  of  art.  I  read 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION     141 

it  not  long  ago,  and  it  is  deeply  interesting  in  showing 
the  relation  between  art  and  reality.  It  contains  a 
good  many  sane  thoughts,  and  every  writer  ought  to 
read  it  carefully.  It  warns  people  about  ascribing 
too  much  importance  to  the  creative  side  of  art,  for, 
however  correct  it  may  be,  it  always  remains  an  im- 
perfect imitation  of  natural  beauty.  The  world  of  our 
conceptions  is  very  meager,  especially  if  we  place  human 
productions  above  the  spirit  which  produced  them. 

"  Write  me  about  N.  I  take  an  interest  in  every  bit 
of  domestic  life  —  for  instance,  whom  her  chamber- 
maid married,  and  is  she  content,  and  do  they  live 
together  happily ;  and  are  they  in  the  old  house  — 
the  large  one  —  or  in  the  small  one  ?  etc.  From  the 
small  things  in  life  you  can  judge  of  the  large  ones.  I 
think  I  owe  my  knowledge  of  life  to  that  principle, 
or  that  peculiarity  of  my  mind,  that  the  minor  things 
do  not  escape  me.  I  notice  them  side  by  side  with 
types  of  character  and  modes  of  life. 

"You  speak  of  M.  and  P.  Their  life  is  that  of  the 
provincial  town.  There  is  much  good  in  it  when  it  is 
enlightened  by  the  spirit  of  knowledge  and  love.  The 
smaller  children  may  introduce  both.  My  dear,  try 
to  appreciate  all  that  is  good  and  honest  in  people. 
Do  not  expect  perfection  from  them,  and  do  not  try 
to  fit  everybody  to  one  shape  —  even  a  healthful  shape 
—  so  long  as  he  is  sincere.  The  human  mind  is  grow- 
ing and  forming  itself,  and  it  is  still  shaking  off  the 
remnants  of  the  old  dust  and  dirt;  and  blessed  are 
those  who  are  already  accustomed  to  hate  that  dirt 
in  themselves  and  in  others.  It  is  the  business  of 
those  who  understand  more  to  give  their  help  to  those 
who  are  climbing  up  out  of  the  cerements  of  the  past. 


142    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

You  have  a  good  heart,  I  know  it.     Answer  me  soon, 
and  receive  my  blessing,  and  my  warm  and  loving  kiss. 

"Your  Mother." 

"April  29. 

"My  dear  Kolinka  :  I  have  seen  neither  you  nor  the 
book.  Although  I  am  accustomed  to  wait  patiently, 
still  I  wish  to  know  as  soon  as  possible  what  is  going 
on  with  those  who  interest  me.  Your  foster  father 
and  mother  probably  think  I  do  not  take  any  interest 
in  small  every-day  affairs.  It  is  not  true.  I  know 
beforehand  most  of  the  events  that  happen  in  their 
lives.  They  are  trifles,  but  these  trifles  make  people 
joyful  or  sad. 

"Tell  your  foster  mamma  that  I  wish  she  would 
describe  to  me  her  household  and  her  friends.  And 
will  you  ask  one  of  your  friends  to  buy  me  a  crocheted 
shawl,  soft  and  elastic,  that  I  can  wrap  round  my  head, 
something  costing  about  three  rubles.  I  have  still  an- 
other request.  I  have  received  twelve  rubles  from  my 
friend  Isabel  Barrows.  This  attention  of  my  trans- 
atlantic friends  is  very  dear  to  me,  and  I  sincerely 
thank  them  for  it,  but  I  have  no  way  to  express  these 
thanks  myself.  Therefore  I  ask  you,  dear,  to  help  me 
to  tell  Mrs.  Barrows  and  all  her  family  and  all  the  friends 
that  I  heartily  greet  them.  So  sure  am  I  of  their  great- 
heartedness  that  I  should  not  have  been  surprised  if  some 
of  them  had  been  here !  Blessed  are  those  who  cultivate 
in  themselves  a  love  for  their  neighbors,  and  who  respect 
before  everything  the  dignity  of  the  human  being. 

"Yesterday  I  saw  one  blade  of  grass  climbing  from 
under  a  stone,  on  the  sunny  side.  It  presented  a  very 
sad  contrast  with  the  rest  of  the  surroundings,  the  bare 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    143 

trees  and  granite  walls.     A  small  patch  of  sky  also 
looked  upon  me." 

"May  18,  1909. 

"My  Dear :  After  each  interview  I  write  you,  for  I 
feel  that  in  the  course  of  it  almost  nothing  has  been  said. 
The  shawl  was  received,  but  it  is  so  good  that  I  cannot 
find  a  proper  place  for  it,  and  I  have  finally  decided 
to  keep  it  in  the  paper  package,  for  I  cannot  make  up 
my  mind  to  put  it  on.  It  was  too  elegant  for  me,  but 
I  thank  you  for  it.  ...  My  greetings  and  respects 
to  all  my  old  friends.  I  remember  all,  absolutely  all, 
and  love  them,  with  all  their  children  and  grand- 
children. For  three  days  now  I  have  seen  the  sun  as  I 
take  my  exercise  walk,  and  I  warm  myself  in  his  rays." 

Influentially  signed  petitions  from  both  England  and 
America  pleaded  for  leniency  for  the  two  aged  revolu- 
tionists. When  they  were  finally  brought  to  trial, 
Doctor  Tchaykovsky  was  acquitted.  Madame  Bresh- 
kovsky  was  again  exiled  to  Siberia,  this  time  for  life. 

Doctor  Tchaykovsky  wrote  to  Mrs.  Barrows  : 
"  We  saw  your  old  friend,  shook  her  firm  hands  and 
kissed  her  cheeks.  She  is  as  firm  and  brave  as  ever, 
though  her  strong  body  begins  to  give  way  under  the 
pressure  of  age  and  circumstances.  She  is  not  so  erect 
as  in  former  times.  She  was  delighted  to  see  Mrs. 
Tchaykovsky  and  my  daughter,  as  well  as  the  crowd 
of  press  correspondents,  and  kissed  them  all.1  She 

1  On  kissing  the  correspondent  of  the  London  Daily  News,  she  said, 
"  I  am  so  glad  to  speak  English  again  and  to  see  an  Englishman  ! "  In 
answer  to  the  press  correspondents'  expressions  of  sympathy,  she  said: 
"Do  not  let  this  trouble  you.  I  have  been  through  it  all  before." 


144     LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

wanted  particularly  to  be  remembered  to  Miss  Alice 
Blackwell  and  yourself,  and  said,  'Tell  them  I  love 
them  —  I  love  them  all.'  It  was  a  matter  of  only  two 
or  three  minutes  between  the  verdict  and  the  guards 
surrounding  her. 

"The  verdict  was  a  surprise.  Her  case  was  partic- 
ularly hopeless,  and  she  was  ready  to  die  in  the  course 
of  the  next  two  years  if  sentenced  to  imprisonment  with 
hard  labor.  (She  was  sixty-eight,  and  the  law  permits 
hard  labor  only  until  the  age  of  seventy.) 

"The  trial  lasted  two  days,  and  both  those  days  I 
sat  with  her  on  the  same  bench,  guards  with  drawn 
swords  on  both  sides  of  us. 

"When  my  companion  was  asked  what  was  her 
profession,  she  said,  quietly  but  firmly,  'Propagandist 
of  Socialist  ideas.'  In  the  course  of  the  proceedings 
she  made  several  remarks  as  to  the  facts,  correcting 
the  statements  of  the  indictment  and  denying  the 
lying  assertions  of  the  witnesses,  but  always  admitting 
her  participation  in  the  work  of  the  party,  with  an  air 
of  quiet  dignity  and  epic  greatness. 

"Oh,  how  painful  it  was  to  see  her  gray  head  and 
erect  form  disappear  among  the  crowd  of  guards  in  the 
corridors  of  the  court !  This,  the  noblest  and  bravest 
woman  I  ever  saw,  thrown  into  the  realm  of  the  down- 
trodden, deprived  of  all  human  rights,  and  subjected 
to  the  petty  caprice  of  any  minor  official  or  jailer !  I 
never  saw  her  face  so  radiant  and  so  proud  as  at  the 
moment  of  listening  to  the  verdict." 

Madame  Breshkovsky  was  exiled  to  Kirensk,  a 
little  town  on  an  island  in  the  Lena  River  several 
thousand  miles  from  Petrograd. 

Her  friends  were  anxious  to  pay  for  more  comfortable 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    145 

transportation  for  her  than  was  provided  for  the  exiles 
by  the  government,  but  she  refused.  She  wanted 
no  special  privileges.  Neither  would  she  accept  the 
money  that  her  friends  sent  her,  except  on  condition 
that  she  might  share  it  with  the  rest.  She  was  held 
in  prison  till  the  large  party  to  be  deported  to  Siberia 
was  ready.  It  consisted  of  one  hundred  and  fifty 
political  offenders,  and  a  hundred  ordinary  criminals. 
The  journey  took  from  spring  until  nearly  autumn. 
First  they  went  from  Petrograd  by  train  to  Irkutsk. 
In  the  prison  there  she  was  ill  for  a  fortnight  with 
scurvy.  One  person  only  was  allowed  to  see  her  and 
give  her  some  of  the  money  that  had  been  raised  for  her, 
but  nothing  else  was  allowed  to  pass  from  his  hands  to 
hers,  not  even  a  lemon  for  the  scurvy.  Then  the 
prisoners  walked  for  two  days,  about  twenty-five  miles 
a  day,  to  Alexandrovsk.  Thence  they  started  in 
carts  for  Kachug.  The  train  was  made  up  of  eighty 
peasant  carts,  each  holding  three  prisoners,  besides  the 
driver.  The  only  extra  comfort  that  Madame  Bresh- 
kovsky  would  accept  was  additional  hay  in  the  bottom 
of  the  cart,  and  probably  that  was  for  the  benefit  of  the 
sick  woman  who  was  traveling  with  her,  and  who  died 
on  the  way.  She  herself  stood  the  journey  well. 
Another  political  exile  saw  her  when  the  convoy  stopped 
at  Manzurka,  and  wrote  in  a  letter  dated  September 
24,  1916: 

"When  Granny  passed  here  on  August  14th  she  asked 
with  evident  sorrow  about  Joseph.  'Oh,  what  is  going 
on  in  the  prisons !  It  is  impossible  either  to  remember 
or  to  speak  of  it.'  Her  face  darkened,  although  a 
moment  before  she  had  been  quite  lively  and  bright. 
This  thought  of  her  unfortunate  comrades  pains  her 


146    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

like  a  terrible  sore  at  her  heart.  This  was  the  only 
moment  that  she  was  gloomy  while  we  saw  her.  All 
the  rest  of  the  time  she  was  so  exceedingly  bright  and 
kind  that  it  was  hard  to  believe  she  is  nearly  seventy 
years  old  and  had  just  got  out  of  prison  after  two  and 
a  hah*  years  of  solitary  confinement.  A  full  figure  with 
rosy  face  (I  paid  special  attention  —  there  were  no 
wrinkles),  sparkling  eyes,  and  gray  hair  showing  from 
under  her  hood  and  hanging  upon  her  forehead.  The 
train  stopped  beyond  our  village  to  change  horses.  It 
was  quite  a  camp,  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  human 
beings  surrounded  by  a  chain  of  escort. 

"Among  this  crowd  in  gray  coats  under  a  gray  sky 
and  in  the  rain,  her  imposing  figure  struck  every  one 
immediately.  It  seemed  to  me  that  since  1905,  when 
I  had  seen  her  last,  she  had  grown  younger.  She  was 
in  good  spirits.  A  crowd  of  young  people  accompanied 
her.  This  brightened  and  encouraged  her,  and  colored 
the  impression  that  she  produced  upon  us.  And  this 
was  after  five  days  of  an  awfully  hard  journey,  all  the 
time  under  a  pouring  rain,  in  a  shaky  cart,  with  the 
nights  passed  in  barracks  or  around  camp  fires.  Many 
persons  would  have  been  quite  prostrated,  but  our 
Granny  looked  as  if  she  were  at  a  students'  party. 

"We  were  admitted  inside  the  chain  of  the  convoy, 
so  that  we  were  able  to  see  her,  as  it  were,  amid  her 
home  surroundings.  She  was  the  centre  of  the  party 
and  the  object  of  general  attention,  not  only  to  her 
comrades,  the  political  prisoners,  but  also  to  the 
ordinary  criminals  and  to  the  soldiers  of  the  convoy. 

"  It  is  a  curious  fact  that  when  we  were  traveling  under 
escort  to  our  destination  in  April,  the  convoy  repeatedly 
asked  us, '  When  is  Granny  coming  up  ?  Lord  grant  us 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    147 

to  see  her  ! '  The  prison  in  Irkutsk  also  was  expecting 
her.  The  whole  of  imprisoned  and  exiled  Siberia  was 
waiting  to  see  this  'miracle  woman.' 

"Unfortunately  the  train  stopped  at  Manzurka 
only,  a  little  while.  There  was  hardly  time  to  speak  to 
her,  so  many  wanted  to  see  her  and  pay  her  their 
respects.  She  was  joking  almost  all  the  time  — 
kissed  us  all  —  was  very  glad  to  see  our  Volodia,  now  a 
grown-up  youth  —  kissed  him.  We  had  hardly  time 
to  exchange  greetings  and  remember  common  friends, 
yourselves  amongst  others,  when  the  guards  approached 
her  and  said,  'Please,  Baboushka,  get  up  on  your  cart,' 
and  accompanied  her  to  the  telega.  Pointing  to  another 
comrade,  who  was  traveling  in  the  same  cart  with  her, 
she  said,  'This  is  my  friend.  He  has  taken  care  of  me 
all  the  way.'  There  was  a  third  passenger  in  the  cart,  a 
feeble  woman,  so  exhausted  that  she  could  hardly  sit 
up,  and  lay  down  at  once  upon  the  hay.  'A  Dissenter,' 
said  Granny  in  an  undertone.  'And  this  is  our  dear 
kind  Starosta,'  pointing  to  a  tall,  bright  student,  the 
deputy  of  the  party. 

"  She  was  wearing  a  sort  of  dressing-gown  of  superior 
shape  and  cloth,  and  a  peculiar  hood." 

From  Kachug  she  made  the  journey  partly  by  boat, 
partly  by  cart,  and  finally  reached  Kirensk  on  August 
27,  1910. 


CHAPTER  XII 

ON  August  29  she  wrote  to  her  old  friend,  George 
Lazareff,  a  political  exile  at  Baugy  sur  Clarens  in 
Switzerland,  who  for  many  years  had  watched  over 
her  welfare  with  great  affection,  and  supplied  her  with 
money : 

"Dear  Brother :  The  day  before  yesterday  I  arrived 
at  my  destination.  I  shall  not  dwell  on  the  details  of 
my  journey,  but  shall  mention  my  needs,  since  winter 
is  approaching. 

"Neither  the  money  nor  my  belongings  which  I 
left  behind  at  the  forwarding  prison  at  St.  Petersburg 
have  been  received  as  yet.  While  I  remember  the  beau- 
tiful warm  blanket  that  you  brought  to  show  me  at 
the  moment  of  my  departure,  I  want  you  to  let  me 
have  in  addition  two  broad  warm  flannel  skirts  and 
two  pairs  of  warm  stockings,  as  well  as  a  warm  head 
shawl  and  a  light  waterproof,  and  also  some  yards  of 
cotton  sheeting,  out  of  which  I  shall  make  all  the  cloth- 
ing I  want. 

"Living  is  very  dear  here;  lodgings  especially  are 
growing  expensive  owing  to  overcrowding,  and  they 
increase  in  price  with  every  new  party  of  exiles.  I  have 
engaged  for  myself  half  of  a  log  house  divided  into 
three  small  rooms,  bedroom,  kitchen,  and  reception 
room !  with  a  separate  entrance,  for  five  rubles  a  month 
(about  two  dollars  and  a  half),  which  includes  firewood, 
water,  and  cleaning.  » 

148 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    149 

"  I  have  become  used  to  eating  little  food,  and  can 
now  live  on  very  little,  but  I  cannot  eat  rough  food. 
My  monstrous  swelling  is  going  down.  It  appears 
to  be  severe  inflammation  of  the  kidneys,  and  I  was 
ordered  baths,  for  which  I  hope  to  arrange  with  the 
assistance  of  kind  friends.  Had  it  not  been  for  the 
care  of  comrades,  I  should  have  fared  very  badly  on 
the  journey. 

"Au  revoir.     I  am  waiting  for  money  and  books, 

novelties,  serious  ones.     I  embrace  sister  M.  and  all 

m 

relations." 

The  first  letter  from  Madame  Breshkovsky  received 
in  America  was  dated  September  29-October  13, 
1910  (the  Russian  calendar  is  a  fortnight  behind  that 
of  the  rest  of  the  world.  The  date  is  given  according 
to  both  calendars). 

"Dearest  and  best  friend  Alice  Stone  Black  well ! 

"  My  good  and  lovely  friend  Helena  Dudley ! 

"Five  years  and  a  half  ago,  when  you  asked  me  to 
remain  with  you  in  America,  I  answered  that  in  five 
years,  when  everything  was  restored  and  put  in  order 
in  Russia,  I  would  come  back.  In  my  mind,  restored 
and  put  in  order  meant  Russia  renewed  and  quietly 
working  for  her  further  progress.  Certainly,  when  I 
said  that,  I  did  not  expect  that  my  wishes  would  be 
exactly  fulfilled.  I  know  that  great  historical  cata- 
clysms do  not  take  place  without  'flux  and  reflux' 
of  success  and  mischiefs,  without  many  and  many 
new  efforts  and  battles  before  the  end  is  attained. 
But,  dearest  friends,  I  did  not  foresee  that  the  recom- 
mencement of  my  relations  with  you  would  follow  from 
the  place  where  I  now  am.  Your  old  acquaintance 


150    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

is  once  more  in  Siberia,  farther  than  ever  from  your 
charming  homes.  But  what  is  distance  if  our  imagi- 
nation can  transport  us  wherever  we  choose,  and  rep- 
resent to  us  all  the  scenes  and  images  that  we  remember 
and  love  ?  So  I  feel,  and  instead  of  fixing  my  attention 
on  all  sorts  of  disagreeable  conditions  environing  my 
everyday  life,  I  prefer  to  visit  all  the  places  and  people 
that  made  me  contented  and  happy.  In  doing  so  I 
feel  myself  always  among  the  best  company  in  the 
world. 

"I  am  not  quite  without  good  company  in  reality. 
There  are  a  few  people  who  have  access  to  me,  and  who 
take  care  of  my  small  needs.  Two  exiled  families 
anticipate  my  material  wants.  A  young  exile  takes 
me  to  walk  around  the  little  island  whereon  is  situated 
the  so-called  town  of  Kirensk,  surrounded  by  two 
rivers,  the  immense  and  cold  Lena  and  the  less  majestic 
Kyrenga.  The  boy  helps  me  to  heat  my  stove  and  to 
make  my  few  purchases.  The  two  years  and  eight 
months  in  the  fortress  of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul  having 
impaired  my  health,  the  young  man  is  of  great  use  to 
me,  for  my  gait  is  not  yet  sure  enough,  and  it  will 
take  some  time  before  my  strength  and  activity  come 
back  enough  to  let  me  exercise  my  feet  without  help. 
The  winter  is  severe.  The  cold  mounts  to  over  56 
Reaumur  l  and  perhaps  during  two  or  three  months 
I  shall  not  be  able  to  go  out.  Nevertheless  I  hope  to 
regain  my  health,  and  to  live  to  see  you  again.  Why 
not?  My  own  experience  has  proved  to  me  how 
greatly  circumstances  change.  Happen  what  may, 

1  The  name  of  the  thermometer  used  in  Russia  instead  of  Fahrenheit. 
They  speak  of  it  as  going  up  to  zero  instead  of  down.  Zero  is  the  freezing 
point. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    151 

I  shall  always  believe  in  the  coining  of  progress,  mental 
as  well  as  moral,  and  in  the  capacity  of  my  country 
and  my  dear  people  to  go  forward. 

"During  my  imprisonment  I  wrote  a  great  deal, 
setting  forth  my  opinions  on  various  questions  of 
social  life;  concerning  the  education  of  children  and 
young  people ;  on  the  destiny  and  vocation  of  women ; 
some  psychological  questions ;  on  the  arts  and  on  cul- 
ture in  general.  In  a  word,  I  explained  at  length  my 
thoughts  and  the  result  of  my  experience  gathered 
during  my  whole  life.  There  was  no  allusion  to  pol- 
itics, nothing  that  could  arouse  prejudice  on  the  part 
of  the  government,  and  yet  all  these  writings  of  mine, 
more  than  six  hundred  sheets,  have  been  taken  from 
me,  and  my  request  to  have  my  own  work  given  back 
to  me  has  had  no  result.  I  am  sorry,  for  in  it  there 
are  counsels  and  opinions  worthy  of  being  listened  to, 
especially  by  the  young  people,  who  among  us  are 
always  eager  to  learn  the  opinion  of  their  elders. 

"I  am  not  sure  that  you  will  receive  this  letter. 
It  is  quite  possible  that  I  may  be  deprived  of  the  joy 
of  corresponding  with  you.  A  watch  is  kept  upon  all 
my  doings  and  my  every  step,  day  and  night,  and  my 
position  in  exile  differs  little  from  that  in  prison.  The 
guards  are  permitted  even  to  wake  me  in  the  night  to 
see  if  I  am  safe.  There  is  always  one  of  the  spies 
watching  me"  from  a  distance.  But  all  this  cannot 
transform  me  into  a  miserable  creature,  for  I  find  every- 
where some  good  souls  that  wish  to  be  useful  to  me. 

"Tell  dear  Mrs.  Barrows  I  sympathize  with  all  my 
heart  with  her  sorrow  in  the  loss  of  such  a  noble  man  as 
her  husband.  Her  daughter,  her  son-in-law,  and  the 
estimable  young  ladies  I  saw  working  with  her  are 


152    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

before  me.  I  remember  every  one  with  whom  I  was 
acquainted  in  America,  especially  the  women  who 
gained  in  my  soul  the  best  nooks.  The  young  men  of 
the  settlement  in  New  York  will  never  be  forgotten, 
as  well  as  Mr.  Ely." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     December  29,  1910-January 
11,  1911. 

"The  new  year  has  come,  and  I  wish  that  you,  my 
dearest  daughter,  may  be  as  well  as  when  I  saw  you. 
You  see  your  Catherine  is  strong,  although  she  is 
twice  as  old  as  you.  Your  two  letters  and  the  card 
from  George  Kennan  gave  me  great  pleasure,  and 
made  me  so  proud  of  myself  I  cannot  express  it.  To 
have  the  confidence  of  such  people  as  you  both,  as  my 
dear  Helena,  it  is  a  great  comfort  —  a  great  comfort. 
Only  see  how  happy  I  am  —  persecuted,  banished, 
and  yet  beloved !  All  these  days,  for  instance,  I 
have  had  so  many  visitors,  poor  comrades  from  all 
the  corners  of  the  large  territory  where  we  abide, 
that  during  the  whole  week  I  could  not  select  a  moment 
to  write,  to  read,  to  be  alone.  My  means  are  very 
small,  but  if  one  desires  to  be  useful,  it  can  be  done 
in  some  way  or  other.  The  comrades  are  especially 
in  need  of  books  and  papers,  and  of  different  tools  for 
various  kinds  of  manufacturing.  There  are  shoe- 
makers, carpenters,  locksmiths,  etc.  The  places  where 
they  live  are  so  small  and  so  far  from  all  good  markets 
and  shops  that  nothing  worth  while  is  to  be  found 
there.  The  want  of  money  is  a  second  reason,  and 
the  prohibition  against  leaving  the  place  of  residence 
assigned  to  them  is  the  third.  All  these  difficulties 
have  to  be  overcome,  and  being  older  and  more  ex- 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    153 

perienced,  I  can  sometimes  help  the  poor  boys  to  ar- 
range their  little  affairs.  Many  of  them  are  without 
clothes,  especially  those  who  have  come  straight  from 
prison.  They  are  not  allowed  to  take  their  clothes 
with  them.  All  their  belongings  are  left  at  the  prison, 
and  have  to  be  forwarded  to  the  owners  at  their  place 
of  destination;  but  the  prison  officials  are  allowed  to 
steal  all  they  wish,  and  only  about  a  quarter  of  the 
goods  are  restored  to  the  owners.  One  may  plead 
and  write  as  often  as  possible,  without  receiving  any 
answer,  and  remain  naked  and  hungry.  How  many 
deaths  take  place  as  the  result  of  want,  of  despair, 
and  of  alcohol !  for  there  are  natures  that  cannot  sup- 
port such  a  way  of  life  —  the  solitude,  the  daily  pri- 
vations, the  lack  of  hope.  You  understand  my  situa- 
tion, —  that  of  an  old  mother  who  wants  to  aid  every 
one  of  them.  I  help,  I  scold,  I  sustain,  I  hear  con- 
fessions (like  a  priest),  I  give  advice  and  warning; 
but  this  is  only  a  drop  in  the  ocean  of  misery.  With 
all  this,  I  feel  myself  strong  and  ready,  always  ready  — 
perhaps  because  of  this. 

"  Write  more  about  yourself,  Helena,  and  the  boys  and 
girls  whom  I  saw  through  you  and  with  you.  Is  the 
New  York  settlement  as  interesting  as  ever?  There 
were  a  dozen  good  young  people.  Some  of  them  have 
visited  Russia ;  I  read  and  heard  of  it,  but  had  not 
the  opportunity  to  meet  them.  Very  sorry.  Give 
them  all  my  best  wishes.  You  may  read  all  the  letters 
enclosed  in  yours,  my  dear  Alice.  No  secret  that 
you  would  not  know.  My  life  is  very  open  now.  I 
am  under  close  surveillance.  I  cannot  take  ten  steps 
without  a  spy  at  my  heels;  but  up  to  this  time  my 
correspondence  is  safe.  It  is  only  in  the  prisons  now 


154     LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

that  letters  have  to  be  inspected.  But  they  never 
hesitate  to  break  their  own  rules.  Your  friend  and 
second  mother,  Catherine." 

To  George  Kennan.     December  29,  1910-January 
11,  1911. 

"Thank  you,  old  friend,  for  your  readiness  to  fill 
my  life  with  your  attentive  goodness.  I  would  like 
the  Woman's  Journal,1  and  one  of  your  best  papers, 
and  a  review  for  which  some  of  my  American  friends 
write.  For  books,  I  would  like  your  works  about 
Japan,  and  some  others  concerning  some  new  ques- 
tions that  are  occupying  the  attention  of  the  world. 
Now  that  I  am  out  of  prison,  the  classics  do  not  attract 
me,  and  my  imagination  keeps  traveling  over  the  whole 
world,  around  all  the  earth,  —  even  farther.  How 
long  it  will  last,  who  knows !  Often  and  often  I  see 
in  the  papers  how  many  of  my  old  friends  have  passed 
away  forever,  but  I  myself  feel  as  if  I  were  fifty  and 
not  sixty-seven.  So  glad,  so  happy  to  hear  of  you, 
to  see  your  writing ! 

"Yes,  our  dear  old  friend,  I  remember  your  visit 
as  well  as  if  it  were  but  yesterday.  The  first  time  I 
read  your  book  about  Siberia  [1895],  I  laughed  much 
over  your  saying  that  I  should  finish  my  days  in 
Selenginsk  and  be  buried  there.  Many  and  many 
times  afterwards  I  looked  back  to  those  words,  and 
was  so  eager  to  see  you,  our  dear  friend,  the  celebrated 
author  of  your  beautiful  book.  Even  the  young  people, 
so  apt  to  forget  or  ignore  history,  are  well  informed 
about  the  writing  and  the  author  himself.  And  now, 
notwithstanding  all  the  horrors  we  have  survived  in 

1  A  woman  suffrage  paper  edited  by  Miss  Blackwell. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    155 

Russia,  your  book  is  translated  and  read  everywhere, 
and  those  who  knew  you  personally  never  speak  of 
you  without  the  best  feeling  of  gratitude.  I  am  sure 
you  are  as  young  and  energetic  as  you  were." 

To    Miss    Blackwell.     January    25,    1911-February 
7,  .1911. 

"The  many  pictures  you  sent  me  made  a  great 
sensation  around  me,  for,  after  looking  at  them  for 
some  days  in  my  cabin,  I  began  to  distribute  them 
among  the  children,  many  of  whom  visit  my  poor 
dwelling,  curious  to  see  the  'grandmother'  known 
about  all  the  town  as  a  persecuted  person.  Only  two 
pictures  I  kept  for  myself :  '  Hello,  mamma ! '  and  a 
view  of  a  villa;  both  pleased  me  much.  Six  letters 
from  you,  two  cards  from  K.,  and  one  letter  from  Miss 
Starr.  It  is  lucky,  very  lucky,  for  I  am  now  quite 
alone,  without  my  young  boy  who  used  to  serve  me 
and  to  nurse  me.  Michael  Borash  has  been  arrested, 
imprisoned,  and  sent  away  to  another  district,  and  is 
not  permitted  to  quit  his  abode.  What  had  he  done? 
Nothing  except  to  visit  the  old  woman  every  day  and 
do  her  housework.  It  is  the  second  case  of  a  man 
being  banished  for  his  acquaintance  with  your  old 
Kitty,  who  thinks  herself  to  be  a  witch,  swallowing 
every  one  that  approaches  her. 

"No  news,  no  theatre,  no  festivals.  I  avoid  all 
sorts  of  routs,  for  the  government  is  lying  in  wait 
for  any  pretext  to  wrong  somebody  or  to  do  me  harm. 
A  week  ago  one  of  our  comrades  was  buried,  and  there 
were  some  of  us  present  at  the  cemetery.  Now  the 
police  are  making  capital  out  of  this  token  of  sym- 
pathy, though  not  a  word  was  spoken,  not  a  song  sung. 


156    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

The  name  of  every  one  present  has  been  written  down, 
and  two  young  men  were  arrested  before  the  funeral, 
as  if  to  prevent  any  disturbance.  .  .  .  Nobody  is  sure 
of  living  in  the  same  place  even  for  half  a  year.  Such 
insecurity  deprives  men  of  all  energy  and  activity. 
How  many  have  settled  down  to  follow  some  trade 
and  begun  to  work  and  to  earn  their  bread,  and  suddenly, 
without  any  tangible  cause,  they  have  been  arrested 
and  sent  away  to  a  place  where  there  is  no  work,  nor 
means  to  obtain  it!  Such  persecutions  drive  men  to 
despair. 

"But  you,  dearest,  can  write  as  often  as  you  will, 
without  fearing  to  be  arrested,  imprisoned,  and  exiled ! 

"It  is  cold  —  40°  and  45°  frost.  My  cabin  does 
not  suffer  too  much,  but  out  of  doors  it  is  too  severe 
for  my  health.  Yet  I  am  going  directly  to  take  a  bath, 
for  my  feet  suffer  without  hot  water.  Half  a  mile 
to  go  there,  another  half  mile  to  come  back.  Up  to 
this  time  my  bodily  strength  has  not  entirely  forsaken 
me. 

"  January  26-February  8. 

"Yesterday,  when  going  to  take  my  bath,  I  was 
accosted  by  the  postilion,  with  a  packet  in  his  hand, 
searching  for  the  address.  He  guessed  it  was  for  me, 
and  handed  it  over.  It  was  a  beautiful  book,  'The 
Tragedy  of  Pelee',  by  George  Kennan.  My  thanks 
to  the  author.  How  is  his  health?  His  little  photo- 
graph would  be  welcome  in  my  cabin.  I  am  very 
sorry  my  boy  is  not  with  me  so  that  we  might  read 
the  book  together.  The  frost  is  intense.  I  remain  in 
my  log  house  quite  alone  with  my  books,  newspapers, 
and  letters.  Many  of  them  are  full  of  good  words, 
and  make  me  contented  with  my  destiny." 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    157 

With  a  picture  postcard  : 

"Everything  is  covered  with  deep  snow  now.  In 
three  months  the  spring  will  do  her  work,  and  this 
picture  shows  what  poetry  is  the  share  of  this  north 
country,  and  what  are  the  walks  that  this  climate  affords. 
Some  hundred  years  hence,  when  people  are  more  sen- 
sible, Siberia  will  be  unrecognizable ;  but  now,  O  God ! 
how  wild  it  is,  how  desert  and  rough  !  It  is  good  fortune 
for  us  that  the  peasantry  and  the  islanders  are  good- 
hearted  people  and  do  not  molest  any  one." 

To  Miss  Ellen  Starr  of  Hull  House,  Chicago.     January 

10-25,  1911. 

"Certainly  I  was  wrong  when  I  said  you  would  lose 
the  vivacity  of  your  feeling  toward  me,  my  beloved 
friend,  my  dear  Ellen  Starr!  The  American  women 
are  not  so  expansive  in  words  and  manners  as  we  Rus- 
sian women,  but  the  stronger  they  are  in  their  faith- 
fulness, the  deeper  is  the  foundation  of  their  attach- 
ment, once  formed.  That  I  knew  always ;  nevertheless 
it  was  difficult  to  be  persuaded  that  persons  who  are 
so  constantly  occupied,  working  so  hard  for  a  great 
many  people,  as  you,  as  our  kind  Helena  Dudley, 
could  have  time  to  think  about  a  far-off  friend,  buried 
in  Russian  prisons  and  Siberian  forests.  The  better 
for  me,  always  so  eager  for  love  and  friendship  from 
those  whom  I  love  myself.  Alice  Blackwell  was  an 
exception  to  me.  I  saw  during  my  personal  acquaint- 
ance with  her  that  she  was  apt  to  embrace  the  whole 
world  with  her  beautiful  heart,  her  strong  soul;  to 
press  it  to  her  bosom,  and  never  be  tired  of  working 
for  it.  But  she  did  too  much  for  her  human  strength, 
and  now  she  must  rest  a  while. 


158    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"Now  I  see  there  is  no  distance,  no  time  for  us; 
and,  sitting  so  far  one  from  another,  we  speak,  we 
relate,  as  if  we  were  together.  For  instance :  I  should 
like  to  know  about  the  'clever*  lady  that  used  to  sit 
at  the  post  in  the  first  room  of  your  settlement.  About 

Mr.  the  commerciant  that  used  to  learn  Italian 

with  you.  About  the  author  of  the  book,  'The  Soul 
of  Black  People'  (if  I  am  not  mistaken).  He  pleased 
me  especially.  And  very  much  I  should  like  to  know 
about  Dr.  Yarros,  with  whom  my  sympathies  were 
growing  every  day.  She  and  her  friend  (a  teacher) 
were  so  hospitable,  so  eager  to  be  useful.  I  do  not 
ask  about  Miss  Addams,  being  sure  she  will  always 
remain  in  Chicago  as  the  head  of  Hull  House,  sur- 
rounded with  her  old  and  new  friends.  But  the  life 
of  many  others  is  apt  to  change  often,  being  more 
dependent  on  various  circumstances. 

"As  to  my  young  man,  who  continues  to  be  my 
devoted  nurse,  he  is  so  much  pleased  with  the  flattering 
words  with  which  you  and  Alice  gratify  him,  that  it 
seems  to  him  almost  impossible  that  he  should  be  so 
highly  appreciated.  He  is  very  modest.  Each  of  the 
letters  from  America  I  have  perused  with  him  once 
more  for  his  sincere  satisfaction.  He  is  a  Social  Dem- 
ocrat,1 but  the  difference  of  creeds  (of  programs)  here 
in  exile,  as  well  as  in  the  prisons,  is  very  often  an- 
nihilated by  the  necessity  of  sympathy  and  friendship. 
The  use  of  personal  capacities,  and  often  the  want  of 

1  The  Social  Democrats  spread  their  propaganda  mainly  among  the  in- 
dustrial workers  in  the  cities  and  towns.  They  held  that  peasants  who 
owned  any  land,  even  though  they  were  wretchedly  poor,  must  be  classed 
as  capitalists.  The  Socialist  Revolutionary  party  worked  chiefly  among 
the  peasants,  and  emphasized  the  importance  of  enlisting  the  peasants  in 
the  common  struggle  against  oppression. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    159 

what  one  would  desire,  make  people  less  fanatical, 
less  dogmatic. 

"I  have  many  young  friends  in  these  districts,  near 
and  far.  All  are  working  hard  for  their  living;  all 
are  so  glad  when  they  receive  any  token  of  love  or 
encouragement.  That  makes  me  responsible,  for  I 
consider  the  young  people  (of  whom  there  are  six 
hundred  in  the  district  of  Kirensk)  as  my  own  children, 
my  grandsons.  And,  just  as  it  happens  with  a  large 
family,  there  are  good  children  and  those  who  are  less 
satisfactory.  Some  of  them  would  be  better  if  they 
were  at  home,  where  it  is  not  so  frightfully  hard  to 
overcome  all  the  difficulties  of  life.  But  the  heart  of 
a  mother  is  indulgent.  Certainly  I  choose  the  better, 
but  the  wicked  shall  live  too. 

"Thank  you,  dearest,  for  your  desire  to  aid  me.  I 
have  not  received  or  heard  of  the  money  you  sent. 
And  yet  it  would  do  well  here,  where  the  need  is  so 
great  that  many  boys  have  their  feet  frozen  for  want 
of  suitable  boots.  How  often  my  heart  overflows 
with  sorrow,  seeing  and  hearing  about  such  misery ! 
I  do  my  utmost  to  spend  as  little  as  possible ;  and  yet 
I  cannot  keep  my  expenses  under  ten  dollars  a  month, 
for  my  own  wants.  Even  rye  bread  is  twice  as  dear 
as  in  Russia.  My  health  does  not  permit  me  to  eat 
meat  and  many  other  things.  Milk,  tea,  white  bread, 
and  some  eggs,  or  a  little  macaroni,  is  all  my  provision. 
And  yet  I  feel  myself  quite  at  ease,  and  strong  enough 
for  my  age  and  all  the  odds.  I  never  feel  any  dis- 
comfort in  my  little  log  house,  having  lived  such  a 
long  time  like  a  beggar,  without  my  own  shelter, 
my  own  bed,  my  own  table  to  write  a  letter,  never 
writing  letters  when  I  was  living  'illegally.'  And 


160    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

now  I  am  as  rich  as  a  queen,  and  want  nothing  for 
myself. 

"Oh,  dearest  Ellen!  forgive  me  my  English.  But 
I  heard  so  many  times  in  Chicago  and  everywhere 
else  such  words  as :  *  Your  bad  English  is  better  to 
us  than  your  good  French,'  that  I  consent  to  be  laughed 
at,  and  to  have  my  writing  mended  by  your  amiable 
hand. 

"  Thus  far  I  receive  all  the  letters  sent  to  my  address. 
No  letters  can  be  read  without  a  special  order  to  the 
gendarmes.  They  know  that  I  never  permit  myself 
to  write  anything  compromising;  nevertheless  their 
curiosity  is  without  end,  and  the  habit  of  persecution 
is  so  old  and  strong  that  they  are  never  tired  of 
doing  it. 

"Now  during  the  Christmas  festivals,  when  many 
young  people  here  took  pleasure  in  disguising  them- 
selves and  going  through  the  town  in  masks,  my 
keepers  were  afraid  I  should  escape  in  that  manner, 
and  they  ran  about  like  lunatics,  searching  and  looking 
after  every  one,  intruding  themselves  into  every  house 
suspected  to  be  the  place  of  my  visit.  And  I  was 
sitting  in  my  cabin,  reading  or  talking  with  one  of  my 
friends.  Every  path  I  take  is  watched  by  a  gloomy 
figure  shrouded  in  black  furs  from  head  to  foot,  and 
standing  immovable  near  the  house  I  visit,  waiting  for 
me  to  return.  Without  permission  I  cannot  set  foot 
on  the  frozen  river,  for  it  would  be  regarded  as  an  at- 
tempt to  escape.  All  night  they  keep  looking  into 
the  windows  of  my  den  (so  low  and  blind  it  is),  and  I 
do  not  hang  any  curtains,  to  keep  them  from  entering 
the  interior  of  my  dwelling.  A  thousand  thanks  for 
your  desire  to  soften  my  fortune." 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    161 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     February  4-21,  1911. 

"  What  a  disaster,  what  desolation !  I  never  sus- 
pected such  bad  things  of  you,  my  dear  friends,  Alice 
and  Helena !  You  are  both  ill  and  overpowered  with 
your  everlasting  efforts  to  do  the  best,  the  most;  to 
be  always  working,  and  tired  over  and  over.  It  was 
your  mode  of  life  all  the  time  I  saw  you. 

"Pray,  both  of  you,  conserve  that  health  which  is 
so  necessary  to  many  and  many  of  your  friends.  You 
ought  to  feel  that  people  have  acquired  the  habit  of 
addressing  themselves  to  Alice  Blackwell,  to  Helena 
Dudley,  in  all  their  needs  and  sorrows,  as  to  their 
legalized  officers,  always  ready  to  act  and  to  aid.  What 
a  disappointment  to  them  not  to  find  these  two  inval- 
uable ladies  at  home!  Think  of  me,  too.  You  do, 
I  know. 

"My  best  time  to  work  at  my  table  is  the  morning, 
but  there  are  many  who  want  me  and  take  up  my 
mornings,  when  my  strength  is  fresh,  my  body  strong. 
The  days  are  very  short,  and  shorter  in  my  hut,  with 
its  small  and  badly  arranged  windows. 

"I  confess  I  am  tired  to-day,  especially  because  I 
could  not  be  as  useful  to  some  persons  as  I  wished. 
But  my  uneasiness  will  last  only  till  early  morning. 

"Your  father  has  passed  away.  Oh,  my  daughter, 
how  many  good  people  we  have  lost !  In  every  news- 
paper I  read  an  obituary  concerning  one  of  the  best. 
And  all  these  people  are  younger  than  I.  How  glad 
I  am  you  have  understood  my  religion  and  accepted 
it!  Glad  for  you,  for  me,  for  the  world. — Now,  my 
mind  is  full  of  belief  and  hope,  and  this  makes  me 
quiet  and  sure  of  the  future.  Here  I  have  to  do  with 
many  and  many  unhappy  boys,  who  (some  of  them) 


162    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION, 

are  not  so  strong  in  their  faith.  I  speak,  I  write,  I 
exhort.  That  takes  much  time,  and  leaves  not  enough 
to  read  books.  Do  not  send  French  translations,  but 
only  some  English  books.  I  prefer  the  originals. 
Some  newspaper  talking  about  our  affairs  would  be 
very  interesting. 

"December  4-21. 

"The  whole  day  interviewed  and  interrupted.  Not 
tired,  but  disturbed.  And  yet  I  try  to  be  patient 
with  everybody,  for  I  know  how  much  happier  I  am 
than  others. 

"Many  of  the  exiles  are  ill  and  lie  in  the  hospital, 
where  the  food  and  all  the  treatment  is  horribly  bad, 
dirty,  and  poor.  The  doctor,  as  well  as  all  the  officers 
of  the  government,  is  unworthy  of  the  name.  He 
receives  very  large  pay,  and  will  do  nothing  for  the  wel- 
fare of  his  patients.  We  have  to  prepare  the  necessary 
food  and  clothes  to  see  them  in  any  degree  satisfied. 
For  shame !  How  bad  everything  in  our  country  is  now ! " 

She  encloses  two  picture  postcards,  showing  views 
of  Kirensk.  On  them  she  writes : 

"This  beautiful  river  Lena  has  very  few  shores  to 
be  built  on ;  big  hills  and  stone  mountains  accompany 
its  current  from  the  beginning  to  the  town  of  Yakutsk. 
Then  it  is  very  wide  and  flows  between  flat  and  boggy 
lowland,  covered  with  a  short  and  poor  wood,  some- 
times with  grass,  where  the  Yakuts  pasture  their  cows 
and  horses.  Farther  north  there  is  nothing  but  the 
moss  that  satisfies  the  humble  and  useful  deer, 'which 
are  the  livelihood  of  the  Yakuts  and  other  tribes  of 
the  far  north. 

"This  beautiful  islet  with  its  town,  viewed  from  the 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    163 

next  mountain.  The  diameter  of  the  place  is  little 
more  than  a  mile.  It  has  nearly  two  thousand  inhab- 
itants of  mixed  population.  Most  of  them  are  de- 
scended from  the  convicts  (ordinary  malefactors) 
sent  here  for  many  and  many  years.  Some  come  of 
their  own  will.  Two  or  three  big  firms,  having  mil- 
lions at  their  disposition.  Telegraph,  post  office, 
boards  of  treasure,  many  police  of  various  grades, 
an  enormous  whisky  factory  (a  government  mon- 
opoly), two  clubs,  three  churches,  and  many  shops  of 
every  size.  You  will  see  the  site  of  my  dwelling  near 
the  dark  park  belonging  to  the  little  old  monastery, 
with  two  or  three  monks.  Before  the  town  you  see 
the  river  Lena,  and  behind  the  river  Kyrenga;  both 
are  equally  large  in  this  place.  All  provisions  are 
transported  here  from  the  west,  and  are  twice  as  dear 
as  in  Russia.  The  culture  is  very  low." 

To  Miss  Helena  Dudley.     February  17-March  2,  1911. 

"You  are  all  too  kind  to  me.  This  makes  me  forget 
my  position  as  an  outcast,  destined  to  a  solitary  ex- 
istence, and  always  apprehensive  of  a  mischief  that  is 
awaiting  me  or  my  nearest  comrades. 

"The  book  sent  by  George  Kennan  gives  me  the 
best  moments  of  my  evening,  so  vividly  and  so  en- 
gagingly are  described  all  the  scenes  of  the  tremendous 
event  seen  by  our  excellent  author.  With  much  in- 
terest would  I  read  the  work  of  Mr.  Walling,  'Russia's 
Message',  as  well  as  the  book  prepared  now  by  Arthur 
Bullard.  If  it  will  not  be  ready  for  a  long  time,  let 
him  send  his  writings  about  Russia,  printed  in  several 
magazines.  It  is  a  great  satisfaction  to  read  the 
writings  of  people  whom  you  knew  and  loved.  It  is 


164    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

like  a  conversation.  When  I  peruse  the  'Tragedy 
of  Pelee'  I  am  in  the  society  of  our  old  friend.  I  see 
him,  I  hear  him,  I  examine  his  every  act  and  intention. 
The  characters  he  describes  are  of  a  high  interest  to 
me,  for  I  am  fond  of  brave  and  honest  men.  The 
other  day  I  received  a  box  from  him  containing  a  nice 
shawl,  white  as  snow.  The  post  office  officials  ex- 
claimed: 'Even  in  America  they  take  an  interest  in 
your  destiny ! '  It  is  true,  I  feel  myself  watched  by 
my  friends  from  all  sides  of  the  universe.  And  this 
my  good  fortune  is  felt  not  only  by  your  grandmother, 
but  by  all  around  her.  This  last  fact  gives  all  these 
signs  of  benevolence  a  very  large  meaning  and  many 
good  effects.  Every  grandmother  has  a  lot  of  grand- 
sons about  her,  and  they  are  dear  to  her  heart.  Ask 
it,  my  dearest  Helena,  of  Mrs.  Barrows. 

"Yes,  I  have  my  family  in  the  United  States  of  Amer- 
ica, and  I  look  upon  all  your  homes  as  my  own.  How 
beautiful  it  is !  It  makes  me  stronger  and  cheers  me 
up,  and  even  if  death  should  take  me  away  before  I  see 
you,  my  best  feelings,  my  soul  will  remain  with  you. 

"  Fortunately  for  me,  this  Siberian  winter  is  so  warm 
and  soft  that  the  inhabitants  say  they  do  not  remember 
one  like  it  for  many  years. 

"  Your  grandmother  and  your  Catherine. 

"As  for  clothing  and  other  matters  of  domestic 
use,  I  have  only  the  necessary,  and  do  not  want  more. 
All  the  surplus  is  divided  among  the  necessitous  people 
of  the  colony;  but  money  is  the  most  needful  thing 
to  apply  to  the  demands  of  the  situation. 

"February  22.  All  these  days  I  have  been  uneasy 
with  the  wicked  influenza,  and  did  not  go  out,  —  could 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    165 

do  nothing  except  read  papers  and  be  tired  to  death 
with  the  visits  of  many  boys,  who,  feeling  the  approach 
of  spring,  are  walking  from  place  to  place  in  search  of 
some  work  and  change  of  life ;  of  that  gloomy  and  dim 
and  miserable  life  that  makes  them  endure  all  sorts 
of  privations  and  offences  from  rough  Nature,  as  well 
as  from  the  government,  always  ready  to  spoil  every 
attempt  to  improve  their  mode  of  existence.  Some- 
times I  wonder,  abashed  and  terrified  by  the  actions  of 
the  government  towards  the  political  exiles.  They 
are  persecuted  merely  for  efforts  to  gain  their  bread, 
and  it  is  not  astonishing  if  some  of  them  have  recourse 
to  violence,  deprived  as  they  are  of  all  possibility  of 
settling  down  like  other  people.  The  beasts  of  the 
forest  are  incomparably  better  organized  and  more 
satisfied  with  its  institutions." 

To  Arthur  Bullard.     About  March  2-16,   1911. 

"I  have  all  the  best  Russian  newspapers  and  maga- 
zines, and  my  friends  are  doing  all  they  can  to  render 
my  abode  as  comfortable  as  possible.  Yet  I  accept 
every  donation  with  gratitude,  for  around  me  I  have  an 
innumerable  quantity  of  people  who  are  in  want  of 
everything.  There  are  about  a  thousand  young  men 
in  our  district  of  Kirensk,  nine  tenths  of  them  without 
any  resources.  I  have  the  possibility  of  knowing 
about  their  needs,  and  I  do  what  I  can. 

"My  greetings  to  your  three  friends.  I  remember 
them  quite  well.  Oh,  how  cheerful  it  would  be  to 
make  visits  to  the  houses  with  wives  and  babies  !  God 
bless  them. 

"My  health  is  improving.  I  am  stronger  than  when 
in  the  fortress." 


166    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

To  Mrs.  Barrows  and  Miss  Blackwell. 

"April  1-15,  1911. 

"My  sister  Isabel,  my  daughter  Alice:  North 
America  is  my  second  patrie.  I  have  often  said : 
'The  United  States  is  the  country  I  would  choose  to 
inhabit,  after  my  own  great  and  poor  country.'  You 
both,  Helena,  and  the  rest  of  the  women  I  knew  in 
America,  made  my  presence  in  your  country  so  full 
of  good  impressions  that  nothing  can  efface  them. 
I  must  add  my  gratitude  to  some  young  men  who  took 
part  in  the  idea  that  fills  my  mind  and  my  heart.  I 
have  friends,  good  and  devoted  friends,  in  Russia.  They 
have  known  me  for  sixty-seven  years,  and  it  is  quite  natu- 
ral to  see  them  accustomed  to  appreciate  one  another. 
But  with  you  I  passed  only  a  few  months,  and  only 
enjoyed,  only  enjoyed.  Yet  you  believed  in  my  sin- 
cerity, my  earnest  wish  to  be  good  and  faithful.  For 
you  are  sincere  and  faithful  yourselves." 

To  June  Barrows  Mussey1  (Mrs.  Barrows's  grandson). 
"When  you  grow  up,  your  grandmother  Catherine 
Breslikovsky  will  tell  you  some  stories  from  her  own 
life,  and  you  will  learn  from  her  experience  how  whole- 
some it  is  to  care  to  endure  all  the  roughnesses  that 
we  encounter  marching  through  the  vicissitudes  of  the 
circumstances  accompanying  the  sinuous  ground  of 
the  way  we  are  thrown  on.  She  feels  herself  happy 
and  strong  because  she  is  always  faithful  to  her  religion, 
which  bids  us  love  our  brotherhood,  mankind,  as  dearly 
as  we  love  ourselves." 

1  Written  on  a  picture  postcard  representing  an  old  Yakut  telling  stories 
to  his  grandson. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    167 

To  Miss  Dudley.1     (Undated.) 

"I  cannot  and  shall  not  forsake  my  poor  boys,  even 
for  the  happiness  of  spending  my  last  days  amidst 
such  friends  as  you.  I  am  sure  that  you  will  under- 
stand me,  and  love  me  no  less.  I  am  a  mother  of  a 
large  family,  who  are  accustomed  to  see  me  devoted 
to  their  interests  and  to  have  me  share  their  fate, 
bad  as  it  is.  Now,  represent  to  yourself  a  mother 
forsaking  her  children,  and  going  to  those  that  are 
rich  and  happy  without  her!  Not  only  my  boys  here, 
but  all  the  young  people  all  over  the  country  would  be 
grieved,  and  their  faith  in  their  grandmother  would 
be  broken.  For  myself,  I  confess,  such  a  life  (for  a 
long  time)  as  you  desire  for  me  would  be  difficult  for 
me,  who  am  accustomed  to  an  existence  very  scarce 
and  modest.  You  cannot  imagine  what  a  want  of  the 
least  comfort  we  support,  having  always  in  view  the 
mendicity  of  the  budget  of  our  people  for  every  day's 
needs.  And  think  of  the  feelings  of  a  mother  who 
should  leave  her  children  scourged  by  their  foes,  and 
go  herself  to  enjoy  a  company  where  she  finds  only 
friendship,  love,  and  worship !  What  would  you  say 
of  it? 

"Yesterday  there  were  two  good  boys  with  me,  and 
I  asked  them,  laughingly,  if  they  approved  of  such  a 
course.  The  faces  of  both  became  sad  and  severe, 
and  one  of  them  said:  'I  do  not  conceive  it.'  As  I 
understand  it,  that  was  not  merely  my  own  opinion 
and  feeling,  but  the  voice  of  every  sane  and  uncor- 
rupted  soul.  If  till  now  I  am  anything  in  the  eyes  of 
my  countrymen  and  yours,  it  is  for  my  sincerity,  and 

1  Miss  Dudley  had  proposed  that  an  effort  be  made  to  get  leave  for  Mme. 
Breshkovsky  to  come  to  America. 


168    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

the  simplicity  of  my  existence.  I  am  even  afraid  that 
I  should  not  suit  quite  well  such  a  rich  country  as  yours, 
with  its  habit  of  having  great  talents  of  every  sort  at 
its  service.  I  have  no  talents,  you  saw  that  yourself. 
But  my  simple  nature  suits  my  people's  simple  heart, 
and  we  understand  and  love  each  other.  We  are  slow 
in  our  doings,  we  are  devoid  of  the  ambition  that 
stimulates  the  doings  of  others,  but  we  are  faithful 
to  our  Ideal,  which  is  brotherhood." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     March  30-April  13,  1911. 

"Two  letters  from  you,  one  from  Isabel  and  one  from 
Helena  —  all  this  is  so  much  luck,  so  much  delight, 
that  I  am  quite  unable  to  fulfill  your  request  to  describe 
my  health  in  every  particular.  You  can  judge  for 
yourself  when  I  say  that  I  inhabit  my  cabin  quite 
alone,  moving  about  very  slowly,  but  being  able  to 
do  all  I  wish  except  to  split  the  wood,  to  clean  my 
walks,  to  bring  water,  and  to  scrub  the  floor.  I  do 
not  wash  my  clothes  either.  All  the  rest  I  do  myself, 
for  it  is  very  little.  I  never  dine,  and  do  not  cook. 
Tea,  milk,  white  bread,  and  some  eggs  are  my  every- 
day eating.  I  could  have  excellent  supplies,  very  good 
provisions,  although  very  dear,  but  I  don't  wish  them. 
First,  my  health  requires  an  abstemious  diet,  second, 
I  do  not  want  to  spend  the  money  on  myself,  having 
around  me  hundreds  of  hungry  young  men,  frozen 
and  exhausted.  Certainly  there  are  some  gaps  in  my 
every-day  regime,  but  we  Russian  people,  we  political 
exiles,  we  cannot  imagine  our  life  otherwise  than  as 
full  of  privation.  Therefore  anyone  who  is  as  well 
situated  (comparatively)  as  I  am  has  no  reason  to 
complain.  I  receive  for  myself  a  lot  of  money  that 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    169 

would  make  me  rich  and  comfortable.  I  enjoy  a  large 
correspondence,  thanks  to  the  desire  of  my  friends 
to  know  about  me.  This  liberality,  as  I  perceive, 
has  alarmed  the  government,  and  the  story  of  my 
deportation  to  another  place  was  invented  to  interrupt 
the  exchange  of  news  between  me  and  my  friends. 
And  it  was  stopped  for  some  time.  But  there  were 
other  people  who  wrote  the  truth,  and  now  all  is  going 
as  before,  to  my  great  joy. 

"  Certainly  it  would  be  better  for  me  to  have  a  young, 
devoted  comrade  at  my  side,  who  would  be  free  enough 
and  willing  to  serve  me.  Yet,  as  that  cannot  be, 
there  is  an  old  cobbler  (a  political  exile  too),  a  good 
drunkard,  but  an  honest  and  devoted  man,  very 
reasonable  when  sober.  This  Platon  comes  to  see 
me  every  two  days,  drinks  tea  with  me,  and  speaks 
abundantly  on  the  deeds  of  which  he  was  once  a  wit- 
ness or  an  actor.  He  loves  and  reveres  the  memory 
of  many  of  our  comrades  who  were  exiled  twenty-five 
and  thirty  years  ago,  now  dead,  or  old  and  crushed 
by  illness  and  all  sorts  of  disaster.  Now  that  he  knows 
he  is  to  visit  me  once  in  so  often  to  fulfill  his  duty,  he 
refrains  from  drinking,  is  always  polite,  and  does  his 
best  to  please  and  to  be  useful. 

"April  1,  or  your  13  April. 

"I  wish  to  be  polite  too,  and  to  answer  as  well  as  I 
know  how  your  question  as  to  my  health.  My  chronic 
troubles  are :  (1)  neuralgia  through  all  my  organism, 
the  feet,  the  hands  and  the  back,  including  the  head ; 
(2)  rheumatism  in  the  feet  and  the  shoulders ;  (3)  kid- 
ney trouble,  which  made  me  very  ill  during  my  last 
imprisonment,  and  was  not  cured  at  all,  for  the  doctor 


170    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

(intentionally  or  unintentionally)  took  no  notice  of  it, 
and  cured  me  only  of  the  hemorrhoidal  attacks  which 
were  the  result  of  want  of  motion.  Now  this  last  dis- 
ease is  nearly  gone,  but  as  for  the  first  three,  they  will 
remain,  I  think,  till  the  end.  When  I  am  cautious 
and  prudent,  these  three  foes  of  mine  behave  themselves 
supportably  enough;  when  imprudent,  or  forgetting 
to  provide  for  urgent  needs,  then  I  feel  badly,  but 
not  so  much  so  as  to  be  unable  to  move  and  to  eat. 
Besides  these  maladies,  fever  during  the  winter  once 
or  twice  a  month  visited  my  old  body,  and  made  me 
feeble,  unable  to  do  the  least  work.  The  intense  frosts 
are  over  and  I  feel  better." 

To  Mrs.  Isabel  C.  Barrows.  March  28-April  10, 1911. 
"Dear,  dearest  and  a  thousand  times  dearest  friend 
and  sister,  Isabel  C.  Barrows !  From  this  my  letter 
you  will  see  what  a  martyrdom  it  is  to  have  to  do  with 
a  certain  class  of  people.  Your  dear  letter,  sent  to 
me  through  the  hands  of  a  bureaucrat,  has  reached 
me  only  to-day !  You  wrote  it  November  17,  1910, 
and  I  received  it  April  10,  1911.  It  was  traveling 
from  one  board  to  another,  from  one  administrator  to 
many  others,  till  a  policeman  brought  it  to  my  little 
blockhouse,  where  I  read  it  with  tears  in  my  eyes, 
learning  only  to-day  how  much  you  were  doing  for 
your  old  friend  and  how  good,  how  exceedingly  good 
your  excellent  husband  was  to  me.  God  be  blessed 
that  your  letter  has  reached  me  at  last.  It  is  such  a 
great  comfort,  such  a  delight,  you  cannot  imagine  it. 
I  only  supposed  all  that  you  tell  me,  but  never  knew 
the  details  of  your  coming  to  Russia,  and  the  great 
interest  that  your  countrymen  took  in  my  fate.  I 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    171 

am  quite  ashamed  of  such  sacrifices  as  you  undertook 
for  my  sake.  My  soul  is  filled  with  pride  and  glad- 
ness at  the  same  time.  What  is  exile  and  all  persecu- 
tions compared  with  the  joy  of  having  such  devoted 
friends ! 

"  March  29-April  11. 

"Oh,  yes,  the  boys  keep  coming  to  see  me  and  to 
tell  me  their  needs;  rarely  have  I  time  to  finish  my 
letter  without  interruption.  Now  I  am  so  anxious 
to  know  if  this  letter  will  reach  you.  Never  to  be 
sure  of  the  lot  of  one's  correspondence,  of  to-morrow, 
—  to  be  a  thing  in  the  hands  of  others,  —  it  is  a  dis- 
agreeable position ;  especially  when  we  wish  so  eagerly 
to  get  our  feelings  transported  there  where  our  best 
friends  are.  It  would  be  a  wound  to  my  soul  if  you 
thought  me  ungrateful.  And  what  do  you  mean  by 
saying  you  are  too  old  to  hope  we  shall  meet  again? 
I  do  not  think  so.  On  the  contrary !  In  some  years 
we  shall  meet  and  spend  many  good  hours  together. 
Why  not  ?  Only  sixty-seven  years  old  I  am,  and  you 
are  much  younger.  My  health,  if  not  strong,  can  yet 
endure  for  some  time  the  uneasiness  of  the  life  that 
awaits  me  for  some  years  longer.  I  hope  to  see  your 
(our)  grandson,  the  little  June  Barrows  Mussey,  who 
is  dear  to  me  as  your  and  your  husband's  descendant, 
which  makes  me  sure  we  shall  have  in  this  young 
man  a  brave,  an  honest,  a  beautiful  boy,  always 
ready  to  serve  the  interests  of  humanity.  Kiss  his 
hands  and  little  feet  for  me." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.    May  8-21. 
"The  letters  from  Miss  Julia  C.  Drury  and  Mr. 
Lewis  Herreshoff,  Bristol,  R.   I.,   written  April   13, 


172    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

1911,  reached  me  only  yesterday.  I  am  not  only 
touched,  but  transported  into  quite  another  world  of 
thought  and  feeling. 

"While  I  perceive  all  the  exaggerations  concerning 
my  qualities  and  capacities,  I  understand  nevertheless 
that  the  friendship  and  sympathy  which  you  all,  my 
friends  in  America,  show  me,  are  not  in  vain,  that 
there  is  a  solid  foundation  on  which  these  feelings  are 
built.  The  better  for  me ! 

"You  will  comprehend  me  when  you  remember  that 
for  half  a  century  my  whole  being  has  been  full  (from 
top  to  toes)  of  one  straining :  to  improve  the  moral, 
mental,  and  economic  life  of  my  people.  It  is  too  old 
a  habit,  and  one  cannot  break  the  bond  that  unites  him 
with  the  existence  of  his  folk.  And  what  an  example 
it  would  be  to  my  youngest  comrades !  God  forbid ! 

"Seventeen  letters  from  you,  two  from  Isabel,  two 
from  Ellen  Starr,  three  from  my  Helena  Dudley,  one 
from  Arthur  Bullard,  my  boy,  from  Mrs.  Kennan  one. 
And  so  many  Easter  cards  that  all  the  children  of 
Kirensk  and  my  boys  too  had  a  present  from  you. 

"Every  one  of  my  friends  asks  what  comfort  would 
best  suit  my  life  in  Siberia.  I  answer :  A  suit  of  winter 
clothing,  from  head  to  foot. 

"I  shall  never  be  able  to  provide  it  myself,  for  all 
the  money  I  have  I  destine  for  others,  who  are  suffer- 
ing more  than  I.  My  friends  have  often  asked  me  to 
buy  winter  clothing  here  in  Kirensk,  but  I  never  did 
and  never  shall  do  it.  It  must  be  light  and  warm. 
Boots,  pantaloons,  overcoat,  and  a  cap;  gloves,  too. 
That  for  my  health :  and  for  my  soul's  welfare,  some 
money  to  aid  the  needy,  to  buy  them  tools  and  ma- 
terials for  work. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    173 

"Your  devoted  and  a  little  excited  and  enerved 
Catherine." 

To  Ellen  Starr.     (Undated.) 

"Twice  I  have  read  your  letter  and  the  verses  of 
Sophie  Jewett.  It  is  the  first  time  I  have  seen  them. 
I  read  also  those  in  the  New  York  Times,1  and  I  am 
ashamed.  Ashamed,  yes,  for  I  do  not  believe  myself 
a  heroine  or  a  saint.  It  is  natural  to  be  reasonable 
and  loving  when  you  have  inherited  these  qualities 
from  your  parents.  But  why  should  we  speak  about 
me,  when  there  are  so  many  questions  that  interest 
me  much  more  ?  For  instance :  There  are  some 
writings  of  mine  that  would  be  read  with  no  little 
use  by  young  people  who  desire  to  form,  to  improve 
their  characters.  My  sayings  and  reasoning  are  very 
simple,  and  therefore  very  clear  and  practical.  I 
have  never  retouched  them,  and  don't  feel  able  to  do 
it,  but  if  somebody  else  would  go  over  them  and  trans- 
late some  of  the  best  places,  I  should  be  glad.  Alice 
ought  to  be  of  the  council,  and  you,  being  stronger  in 
health,  ought  to  help  her.  As  soon  as  I  get  my  writ- 
ings from  the  hands  of  the  police,  I  will  copy  some 
sheets  and  send  them  to  you. 

"I  agree  with  you  that  the  presence  of  honest  and 
inspired  minds  is  a  great  blessing  for  mankind,  and 
we  ought  to  teach  our  children  to  honor  above  all  the 
nobleness  of  the  soul,  for  there  is  not  a  greater  treasure 
on  earth.  And  yet  we  should  teach  them,  too,  that 
this  ought  to  become  a  fact  of  every  day,  and,  speaking 
truly,  every  human  being  must  try  and  can  succeed 
in  attaining  the  highest  grade  of  mental  dignity.  It 

1  See  Appendix. 


174    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

is  our  right  and  it  is  our  duty.     Otherwise  why  should 
we  be  better  than  the  rest  ? 

"When  I  see  one  of  the  noble  hearts  of  my  boys,  I 
become  as  poetical  and  sentimental  as  you,  dear 
friend,  and  I  admire  the  earnestness  and  strength  of 
their  feelings.  But  when  I  hear  people  praise  my 
own  qualities,  it  makes  me  feel  confused  and  abashed. 
Too  long  have  I  carried  on  my  work,  and  have  had 
time  to  be  accustomed  to  see  it  as  an  everyday  task. 
Nevertheless  I  confess  that  your  letters  and  the  good 
words  I  have  heard  from  my  American  friends  gave  me 
great  joy." 

To  Miss  Dudley.  May  20. 

"Overpowered  !  Overpowered  !  Overpowered  ! 
Nine  letters,  besides  postcards  and  innumerable  mag- 
azines, books  and  papers !  All  at  once,  for  our  mail 
was  cut  off  for  a  whole  month  because  the  great 
river  Lena  and  our  less  great  river  Kyrenga  were 
carrying  the  ice  to  the  north.  The  spring  is  cold, 
but  I  feel  well,  and  I  am  happy  because  of  the 
tokens  of  love  my  American  friends  send  me  in  such 
numbers. 

"I  will  not  repeat  all  my  words  of  gratitude.  You 
must  know  once  for  the  rest  of  my  life  that  I  am  a 
creature  full  of  gratitude,  and  prize  every  token  of 
friendship  and  goodness.  One  thing  makes  me  wonder 
a  little :  it  is  the  admiration  for  my  character  and  my 
patience  in  enduring  my  fate.  First,  I  will  say  that 
there  are  many  and  many  people  among  us  who  have 
shown  not  less  but  more  courage  and  grandeur  of  soul 
during  their  whole  lives,  —  so  many  people  who  have 
died  like  very  heroes.  Secondly,  we  Russians  are  a 


LITTLE  _GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    175 

people  of  religion ;  we  have  one  in  our  soul,  through 
all  the  nation,  and  the  worship  of  the  beloved  Idea  is 
our  national  trait.  This  capacity  of  appreciating  the 
worshiped  Idea  above  all  the  rest  of  the  material 
world  makes  us  strong  and  willing  to  sacrifice  our- 
selves for  its  sake.  This  conviction  makes  me  bashful 
and  confused  when  hearing  or  reading  beautiful  words 
about  myself.  I  would  think  it  is  so  easy  and  so  com- 
fortable to  serve  a  cause  chosen  by  ourselves !  Cer- 
tainly one  is  tired  sometimes,  and  sometimes  irritated 
against  all  the  silliness  of  mankind,  yet  it  does  not 
continue,  having  no  time  to  mourn,  obliged  as  we 
are  to  think  how  to  do  better. 

"I  hope  some  day  to  get  my  manuscript  written 
in  the  fortress.  I  hear  that  it  has  already  come, 
and  the  chief  of  police  is  reading  it,  out  of  curiosity 
or  fear.  You  see  with  what  might  it  is  endowed ! 
The  administration  of  the  fortress  consented  to  give 
it  out  to  me.  The  Police  Department  in  St.  Peters- 
burg consented  too,  and  yet  the  chief  of  police  in 
Kirensk  is  allowed  to  decide  whether  my  writings 
ought  to  be  given  over  to  me.  And  he  has  kept  them 
for  many  weeks,  and  will  keep  them  for  months  perhaps. 
I  never  speak  with  him,  and  have  no  wish  to  meet 
him  anywhere.  This  winter  some  comedies  and 
dramas  were  given  here  many  times,  and  some  vocal 
and  instrumental  concerts  (thanks  to  the  unofficial 
participation  of  some  boys) ;  but  I  never  go  to  see 
or  hear  them,  disgusted  to  be  in  the  same  room  with 
the  policemen,  who  are  always  there  in  force,  never 
paying  for  their  places. 

"I  have  to  answer  32  letters  this  week.  Lady 
Mackintosh's  letter  made  me  glad ;  very." 


176    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

To  Arthur  Bullard.  (Undated.) 
"Billiard,  my  boy!  Already  in  Panama!  You 
grind  yourself  into  pieces  and  will  be  old  at  forty. 
I  would  have  you  always  young  and  active,  but  with- 
out excitement,  or,  better,  without  too  much  strain. 
It  is  so  delightful  to  know  our  friends  are  in  good 
health,  and  strong  in  body  and  soul,  and  it  makes 
us  so  sad  when  we  hear  that  one  of  them  is  declining 
in  strength.  Pray,  do  not  exhaust  your  nerves;  pre- 
serve your  capability  of  work  for  the  future  too.  It 
cheers  me  up  to  know  that  here  and  there  are  boys 
and  girls  who  keep  in  their  hearts  an  unexhausted 
desire  to  aid  the  world  to  do  better.  Such  minds 
and  characters  are  the  flowers  that  embellish  our 
earth.  Only  think  how  gloomy  and  cold  it  would 
be  without  the  best !  I  once  asked  you  :  '  What  would 
become  of  your  country  if  every  year  10,000  of  your 
best  people  were  exiled  from  it?'  You  answered, 
'If  only  fifty  men,  the  best  of  us,  should  go  away  every 
year,  our  country  would  remain  like  a  desert.' 

"My  friend!  You  must  work,  you  must  love  and 
feel  heartily,  you  must  make  efforts  to  improve  your- 
self and  others,  and  yet  you  must  learn  to  be  more 
abstract,  to  consider  the  world  and  its  phenomena 
with  more  coolness  —  all  the  phenomena,  not  ex- 
cluding those  that  concern  us  personally.  You  have 
long  known,  I  am  sure,  that  a  person  who  cares  much 
for  his  own  welfare,  and  is  much  affected  by  all  that 
happens  in  the  sphere  of  his  own  life,  is  much  more 
enerved  and  tired  with  the  world  than  a  person  whose 
mind  is  dwelling  on  the  questions  that  concern  man- 
kind as  a  whole.  I  don't  mean  that  one  can  live  like 
a  machine,  never  hurt  by  the  acridity  of  the  atmosphere 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION     177 

created  by  our  silliness  and  ignorance,  by  the  mis- 
chiefs that  come  over  and  over  in  a  very  wonderful 
miscellaneous  form  and  quantity;  but  one  can  get 
the  habit  of  struggling  through  all  his  existence  and 
never  being  disappointed,  never  exhausted.  More 
philosophy,  more  contemplation,  more  perception 
reaching  into  the  future.  —  You  know  well  yourself 
how  to  do,  and  it  is  only  my  longing  for  your  welfare 
that  makes  me  speak  about  questions  so  thoroughly 
studied  by  every  one  interested  in  the  existence  of  his 
own  psychology.  I  wish  to  know  you  safe  and  con- 
served. 

"Now  I  have  to  answer  twenty  letters  more.  The 
day  is  warm.  My  window  is  open.  The  little  meadow 
before  my  blockhouse  is  full  of  hens  and  cocks  .  .  . 
so  peaceful  .  .  .  and  so  much  grief  around!" 


CHAPTER  XIII 

To  Miss  Blackwell.    May  27-June  9,  1911. 

"You  ask  me  what  I  think  about  woman  suffrage. 
In  Russia  the  question  of  the  equality  of  rights  of 
both  sexes  has  been  decided  affirmatively,  not  only 
by  the  intelligent  people  but  by  the  workmen  and 
peasantry  too.  Like  many  other  progressive  ideas, 
that  of  the  equality  of  rights  is  delayed  only  by  the 
same  force  that  holds  back  all  the  best  beginnings  in 
the  country.  We  have  no  need  to  preach  the  equality 
of  the  sexes,  or  that  of  the  races  inhabiting  our  country, 
for  the  idea  as  a  principle  is  accepted  by  the  majority 
of  our  people.  This  idea  is  included  as  a  part  of  the 
whole  faith  we  confess.  But  as  we  have  on  the  other 
hand  a  body  of  black-meaning  rascals,  there  is,  in 
Russia  also,  n  group  of  women  writing  and  speaking 
on  the  necessity  of  conferring  on  women  all  the  political 
rights  which  men  enjoy.'  (Up  to  this  time  I  have 
never  seen  the  papers  and  magazines  of  the  Russian 
suffragists.  Now  I  shall  ask  to  have  some  sent  me.) 
Here,  the  women  and  the  men  alike  are  deprived  of 
every  right,  and  alike  they  understand  that  before 
all  other  rights  one  ought  to  struggle  fqr  the  right  to 
breathe. 

"In  a  country  like  yours,  it  is  indispensable  to 
further  the  question  of  equality  by  all  means,  for, 
firstly,  the  means  are  very  large  and  open,  and,  sec- 
ondly, every  line  of  progress  advances  more  swiftly 
when  there  is  a  strong  group  of  active  and  intelligent 

178 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    179 

heads  and  arms  to  promote  it.  I  welcome  with  all 
my  heart  the  intensity  of  the  efforts  shown  so  clearly 
and  so  gracefully  in  your  estimable  and  beloved 
Woman's  Journal.  When  yesterday  I  read  the  issue 
of  May  6,  1911,  I  felt  myself  in  such  an  admirable 
society,  so  witty,  so  elegant  and  so  devoted,  that  it 
seemed  to  me  a  beautiful  festival  made  for  the  sake 
of  equality,  humanity  and  brotherhood. 

"Certainly,  I  do  not  think  that  the  decision  of  the 
question  of  women's  fate  consists  only  in  the  suffrage. 
Their  destiny  is  so  great,  so  big,  so  broad,  and  so  end- 
less, that  it  cannot  be  defined  by  one  casual,  though 
historic,  episode  of  their  existence.  Therefore,  when 
in  the  fortress  I  wrote  on  women's  destiny,  I  took 
the  question  in  a  larger  sense,  and  considered  their 
whole  significance  as  one  half  of  the  human  race  —  a 
half  that  holds  in  its  hands  the  future  of  mankind. 
The  development  of  body  and  soul  depends  on  women's 
capacities,  their  experience,  their  love,  their  accomplish- 
ments, moral  and  intellectual.  As  man  has  found  his 
destiny  in  nourishing  and  keeping  safe  his  race,  so 
woman  must  take  for  herself  the  duty  of  improving 
the  race  and  making  it  worthy  of  the  name  of  homo 
sapiens.  All  that  is  love,  tenderness,  grace,  beauty, 
courage,'  abnegation  for  the  sake  of  large  ideals,  for 
the  welfare  of  the  future  inhabitants  of  the  world,  — 
all  these  "feelings  and  capacities  are  the  result  of  our 
organism,  are  innate  in  us,  and  prepare  our  natures 
to  be  not  only  wives  and  mothers,  but  teachers,  doctors 
of  medicine,  professors,  ministers,  statisticians,  hygien- 
ists,  psychologists,  Socialists,  and  all  that  is  necessary 
to  be  known- by  persons  whose  duty  it  is  to  educate 
and  elevate  the  human  race.  Certainly,  women  have 


180    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

all  political  rights  as  well  as  men,  without  which  they 
never  will  have  their  actions  as  free  as  they  should  be. 
Every  human  being  has  a  right  to  be  all  the  best  he 
can  be,  therefore  nothing  ought  to  embarrass  his 
efforts,  his  strivings.  That  must  be  understood  by 
every  one.  But  the  question  of  duty  is  much  more 
complex,  for  Nature  herself  has  made  some  differences 
between  the  sexes,  and  these  differences,  in  their  turn, 
have  created  different  instincts,  sympathies,  feelings, 
likings,  as  well  as  different  dispositions  of  mental 
capacities.  I  never  wish  to  discuss  which  half  of 
mankind  is  better,  or  more  genial.  For  my  part,  I 
am  sure  that  both  halves  are  wonderfully,  beautifully 
made !  And  yet  I  prefer  to  remain  a  woman,  for  I  relish 
very  much  the  most  delicate  sides  of  the  human  soul. 

"So,  dearest  daughter,  agreeing  that  the  happiness 
of  our  race  consists  in  everlasting  struggle  against  the 
wicked  habits  of  the  past  and  in  everlasting  straining 
to  elevate  ourselves  to  the  highest  degree  of  perfection,  I 
have  found  out  that  of  the  two  halves  of  mankind 
it  is  the  women  that  can  better,  and  ought  to,  as 
more  inclined  to  it,  work  (more  successfully  in  every 
sense)  in  this  field  of  human  action. 

"And  it  makes  me  very  and  very  sorry,  seeing  that 
many  women,  well  educated  and  intelligent  enough, 
instead  of  doing  this  beautiful  work,  instead  of  carving 
out  men's  souls  and  giving  to  the  world  more  and 
more  accomplished  examples,  are  eager  to  become,  if 
not  policemen,  yet  something  like  agents  of  the  ad- 
ministration, officers  of  various  institutions  that  con- 
cern only  the  exterior  side  of  the  life  of  our  country. 
They  are  not  trying  earnestly  enough  to  prove  and 
to  improve  their  own  talents,  their  own  creative  force. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    181 

They  are  not  doing  for  the  welfare  of  mankind  all 
they  can  do  as  women,  as  mothers,  and  governesses, 
as  sisters  and  companions,  as  leaders  of  the  morality 
of  our  world,  as  philosophers  of  the  great  love  that 
unites  all  souls  together  and  establishes  such  a  brother- 
hood among  us  that  no  exterior  forms  or  political 
constructions,  no  new  principles  or  teachings  can  de- 
prive us  of  it.  Our  very  souls  ought  to  be  cultivated 
in  such  a  direction  as  to  choose  and  to  prefer  the 
higher,  largest  and  clearest  ideas.  This  poor  earth- 
ball  of  ours  ought  to  be  our  home  instead  of  our  world, 
and  we  ought  to  be  all  one  family,  not  at  all  so  large 
as  not  to  be  known  to  everybody.  The  more  you 
think  about  the  affairs  of  the  earth  and  its  popula- 
tion, the  more  you  remark  how  limited  are  the  bands 
of  the  life  of  the  place  we  dwell  on.  In  comparatively 
few  centuries,  every  man  will  know  every  nook  of 
our  globe,  and  will  be  acquainted  with  every  tinge 
and  color  of  our  skin,  while  industry  is  making  so 
great  a  progress  as  to  permit  us  to  fulfill  all  the  desires 
of  our  curiosity.  And  if  we  remain  only  indifferent 
spectators  of  all  we  see,  we  shall  very  soon  be  tired  of 
our  character  of  idle  spectators.  Quite  another  thing 
when  our  heart  and  our  mind  are  interested  in  what 
they  are  contemplating.  In  this  case  we  not  only 
look,  not  only  satisfy  our  curiosity;  we  feel  strongly, 
and  all  our  capacities  are  working  with  the  desire 
to  improve  the  status  quo  when  it  is  bad,  or  to  learn 
to  assume  the  witnessed,  when  it  is  worthy  of  it. 

"I  am  sure  there  are  men  who  possess  a  very  delicate 
and  beautiful  soul,  a  fine  mind,  that  picks  out  of  the 
world  all  the  best  it  can  encounter.  Yet  I  am  sure 
such  minds,  belonging  to  the  masculine  sex,  are  rather 


182    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

an  exception;  while  the  construction  of  our  feminine 
mind  has  been  cultivated  during  so  many  thousands 
of  centuries  in  a  pacific  direction,  preferring  the  sphere 
of  sense  and  meditation.  .  .  .  Yes,  I  am  sure  it  is 
time  for  the  women  to  step  out  as  educators,  as  creators 
of  new  relations  between  one  another.  There  must  be 
principles,  but  there  ought  to  be  practice,  too.  Who 
will  set  the  example?  Only  those  that  can  observe 
the  functions  of  our  body  and  mind  from  the  very  in- 
fancy of  its  growth  can  inculcate  successfully  new 
habits  and  new  inclinations  in  the  coming  generation. 
"For  the  winter  I  shall  take  another  cabin,  more 
comfortable;  this  one  being  too  old  and  demolished. 
Cold,  rain,  wind,  all  comes  through." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     July  1,  1911. 

"You  wish  to  have  news  from  me  oftener,  and  I 
am  so  slow  with  my  answer.  Perhaps  I  am  getting 
old,  though  I  cannot  believe  it.  When,  feeling  my- 
self uneasy,  I  am  tired,  not  so  alert  and  brave  as  I 
am  accustomed  to  be,  it  seems  to  me  it  is  a  stranger 
woman,  and  I  consider  her  as  a  queer  and  drollish 
being,  looking  at  her  with  disgust.  It  is  not  I.  Not 
only  in  my  imagination,  but  in  my  innermost  sensa- 
tion. And  you  can  be  at  ease  about  the  disposition 
of  my  mind.  Even  when  feeble  in  body,  I  shall  re- 
main always  strong  in  soul.  I  cannot  be  otherwise: 
the  mind  has  worked  too  long  in  the  same  direction, 
and  the  habit  is  formed." 

To  Miss  Dudley.     June  20-July  2,  1911. 

"I  have  many  cards  coming  from  various  parts  of 
the  world;  Japan,  Australia,  Honolulu,  Canada,  Call- 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    183 

fornia,  Florida,  and  other  places  in  your  great  republic. 
It  is  very  pleasant  to  have  every  mail  bringing  some 
new  magazine,  some  new  view  of  far  off  lands  and 
countries.  Nevertheless,  being  a  Slavonic  woman, 
—  therefore  slow  and  fanciful,  —  I  am  not  able  to 
respond  to  all  these  tokens  of  benevolence,  and  feel 
myself  always  guilty  toward  the  good  people  who  send 
me  so  many  delicacies.  And  so,  if  it  has  been  said 
in  one  of  the  magazines  that  I  am  delighted  to  receive 
news  and  pictures,  it  must  be  said,  too,  how  thankful 
I  feel." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     July  11-22,  1911. 

"You  have  spoiled  me  so  that  the  two  weeks  with- 
out your  letters  seemed  two  months  to  me.  During 
this  time  I  have  had  letters  from  many  American 
women  unknown  to  me,  but  very  amicable,  full  of 
sympathy  toward  the  old  exiled  'Baboushka.'  The 
book  I  got  from  Mr.  Lewis  Herreshoff  ('The  Seven 
Ages  of  Washington')  made  me  cheerful,  for  I  like 
much  to  read  about  great  characters ;  but  all  this 
cannot  make  up  for  the  lack  of  news  from  my  daughter. 
You  are  my  own ;  so  I  felt  even  in  America. 

"Now  I  want  to  say  some  words  about  the  Woman' 's 
Journal.  It  is  a  special  publication  for  the  study 
and  propagation  of  one  serious  idea,  which  ought  to 
be  realized  as  soon  as  possible.  And  you  are  quite 
right  when  all  that  does  not  concern  this  idea,  directly 
or  indirectly,  is  excluded  from  the  paper.  In  this 
way  your  journal  has  acquired  a  vigorous  and  warlike 
character,  and  makes  a  strong  impression.  I  was 
glad  to  see  that  your  parents  were  commemorated. 
You  and  I  are  happy  in  having  had  such  excellent 


184    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

parents.  I  thank  my  fate  every  day  for  this  good 
fortune. 

"I  find  that  all  your  magazines  printed  for  a  special 
purpose  are  much  better  than  those  which  are  destined 
to  entertain  then*  readers.  Life  and  Labor,  the  Na- 
tional  Geographic  Magazine  for  instance,  even  those 
for  young  people  and  children  are  very  well  edited. 
The  Outlook  is  welcome,  too.  As  for  the  magazines 
you  pick  up  in  the  railroad  train  and  send  to  me,  they 
make  a  beautiful  store  of  books  that  furnish  reading 
for  the  scholars  and  beautiful  pictures  for  the  children. 
To-day  I  must  congratulate  two  young  girls  (nine  and 
four  years  old)  because  it  is  their  birthday,  and  I  shall 
give  them  some  of  the  pictures,  bright  with  colors,  made 
to  attract  the  attention  of  the  public  to  some  new  ware 
or  invention.  How  glad  will  be  the  young  damsels 
getting  such  unseen  tableaux  ! 

"Long  ago  I  formed  the  habit  of  looking  upon  people 
like  growing  children,  and  these  last  as  little  animals, 
growing  with  every  day  nearer  and  nearer  to  the 
human  being;  and,  surveying  the  course  of  their 
development,  I  learned  to  understand  the  psychology 
of  our  mind,  our  soul ;  also  to  distinguish  the  inclina- 
tions of  the  two  sexes,  and  to  find  out  how  many  ex- 
ceptions there  are  on  both  sides,  which  form  a  lot  of 
miscellaneous  examples  of  our  race.  Many,  many 
types  there  are;  the  combinations  being  so  manifold, 
so  fanciful.  Very  interesting. 

"I  strain  my  energy  and  my  English  trying  to 
answer  every  address  sent  to  me  with  cards,  postals, 
magazines,  and  yet  I  am  sure  that  many  remain  with- 
out answers,  and  it  torments  my  mind. 

"  Somebody  said  Miss  Addams  is  a  living  proof  that 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    185 

a  woman  can  do  very  much  without  voting.  One 
can  answer :  She  would  do  much  more  when  the 
votes  of  her  sisters  were  with  her.  The  book  Miss 
Addams  wrote,  Miss  Starr  must  send  me. 

"Soon  I  shall  have  two  albums  full  of  American 
postal  cards,  and  it  will  be  a  commonwealth  object, 
everyone  will  enjoy  it. 

"Next  month  I  shall  change  my  cabin  for  another 
one,  not  so  old  and  dilapidated.  It  is  on  the  same 
street,  and  not  far  from  the  neighbors  who  are  so 
good  about  helping  me  in  my  little  wants,  but  the 
courtyard  is  not  so  large,  and  will  not  be  my  own 
domain,  for  there  is  a  house  on  the  same  yard,  peopled 
with  a  widow  and  her  two  daughters.  The  owner  of 
the  house  dwells  there  too.  Perhaps  they  will  be 
good  to  me.  I  hope  so.  My  health  is  always  better. 
I  take  care  of  it,  and  pray  you,  as  well  as  my  sister 
Isabel  and  our  dearest  and  best  Helena,  to  take  ex- 
ample and  follow  my  system.  Spare  your  forces  as 
long  as  possible,  for  a  life  devoted  long  to  the  chosen 
cause  is  the  best  example  we  can  give  to  our  posterity." 

To  Mrs.  Barrows.     July  12-15. 

"I  am  sure  the  parents  of  June  will  not  spoil  the 
boy  with  too  much  cajoling  and  nursing.  I  wish  he 
might  have  a  sister.  I  love  the  girls;  there  are  ex- 
cellent ones." 

To  Miss  Dudley.     5  A.M.,  July  21,  1911. 

"You  see,  I  shall  begin  very  early,  in  order  to  re- 
main alone  and  be  able  to  write.  During  the  day  my 
cabin  is  never  empty.  The  boys  keep  coming  and 


186    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

going  out  to  see  the  grandmother,  to  tell  their  affairs, 
to  take  counsel,  to  ask,  to  pray,  to  be  consoled,  to  get 
books,  papers,  some  clothes,  money,  and  oftener  to 
spend  some  hours  with  a  soul  they  know  to  be  devoted 
to  their  mental  and  material  interest.  I  was  uneasy 
last  month,  and  so  much  visitation  made  me  fatigued ; 
yet,  knowing  the  boys  have  not  a  nook  where  they  feel 
themselves  as  well  off  as  with  me,  I  only  once  cheated 
them  for  coming  too  late  in  the  evening,  for  at  ten  I 
go  to  bed.  Oh,  poor  children,  they  put  up  with  every- 
thing from  their  grandmother,  and  are  delighted  to  be 
loved  and  cherished  by  her.  Working  very  hard  they 
earn  a  very  poor  subsistence  only,  for  every  path, 
every  effort  on  their  part  is  checked  and  confronted 
with  the  hatred  of  those  who  have  the  might  to  do 
all  the  evil.  They  are  arrested  and  transported  from 
place  to  place  on  every  occasion  of  the  ill  humor  of 
an  official.  Not  one  knows  what  will  become  of  him 
to-morrow.  I  am  not  willing  to  speak  about  it,  other- 
wise it  would  be  impossible  to  find  colors  and  expres- 
sions to  depict  all  that  we  are  subjected  to. 

"I  do  not  complain.  For  my  part,  I  am  too  well 
accustomed  to  all  these  spectacles,  and  support  my 
fate  bravely  enough;  but  seeing  the  best  youth  of 
the  country  mutilated,  deformed,  exterminated,  one 
cannot  remain  indifferent. 

"A  very  few  days  have  been  warm;  in  two  months 
we  shall  see  snow  again,  and  for  seven  and  eight 
months.  There  are  many  beautiful  flowers  in  the 
woods  and  vales  here,  but  I  never  leave  the  town, 
and  can  see  them  only  when  brought.  I  am  happy 
in  the  devotion  of  my  boys  and  the  love  of  my  friends 
in  America." 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    187 

To  Mrs.  Barrows.     May  30-June  12,  1911. 

"Lincoln's  statue  and  seven  other  cards  ornament 
my  window  before  me,  and  the  mignonette *  will 
make  the  delight  of  many  houses.  'The  Order  of 
Peace  and  Good  Will'  (by  Charles  F.  Dole)  is  a  beau- 
tiful copy.  Pity  I  am  reading  it  alone." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.    August  24-September  6,  1911. 

"  Why  do  I  write  to  you  in  English  and  not  French  ? 
Because  I  feel  myself  nearer  to  you,  to  Isabel  and 
Helena.  I  like  very  much  this  rich  and  original 
organ  of  expression. 

"You  were  jealous  about  my  mentioning  the  'boys' 
only.  The  reason  is  that  in  the  district  of  Kirensk 
there  are  a  thousand  boys  and  only  eight  or  ten  girls, 
scattered  all  over  it.  Here  in  the  town  I  have  had 
only  one.  The  exiled  and  condemned  women,  who 
are  not  in  the  hard  labor  prisons,  are  settled  part  of 
them  in  the  west  of  Siberia  and  part  in  the  southern 
districts  of  Irkutsk.  Only  those  who  were  not  tried, 
but  exiled  by  administrative  order,  are  settled  in  the 
region  of  Yakutsk,  1500  miles  to  the  north. 

"Aug.  25-Sept.  7. 

"Yesterday  this  letter  was  interrupted  by  the  visit 
of  a  squadron  of  gendarmes  and  police.  They  came 
to  make  a  search  in  my  lodging,  and  turned  over  all 
my  correspondence  and  all  the  papers  and  magazines. 
They  remained  an  hour  and  a  half.  There  was  noth- 
ing to  be  sequestered,  and  as  the  gendarmes  could 

1  Mrs.  Barrows  had  sent  Madame  Breshkovsky  a  package  of  mignonette 
seed. 


188    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

not  go  away  without  taking  something,  they  took  the 
photographs  showing  me  with  some  of  my  comrades. 

"Again  the  police  of  Kirensk  are  troubled  about 
my  safety ;  again  the  chief  himself  is  tripping  around 
my  cabin  every  night  now,  in  fear  that  I  may  be 
transported  to  some  secret  place  and  vanish  away. 
It  is  very  disagreeable,  for  the  neighbors'  hounds 
keep  on  barking  for  hours  after  these  nightly  visits, 
and  I  cannot  sleep.  It  was  the  same  all  last  winter, 
and  now  it  is  beginning  again.  I  laugh  very  much 
about  these  fusses,  and  yet  I  am  fidgeting  about  the 
fate  of  those  who  come  to  visit  me,  the  boys  who 
cannot  avoid  the  connection  with  me,  having  nobody 
else  to  nurse  them. 

"Your  songs,  Alice,  I  sing  them  when  alone,  invent- 
ing tunes  of  my  own. 

"Now  I  am  not  alone  in  reading  English.  In  my 
vicinity  (400  miles  from  me)  there  is  an  exiled  pro- 
fessor who  reads  English  with  much  delight,  and  the 
Independent  is  appointed  for  him.  After  having 
looked  it  over,  I  send  it  to  Kachug,  a  village  on  the 
shore  of  the  Lena,  where  our  professor  lives.  Another 
boy  comes  to  read  with  me,  and  I  let  him  read  your 
letters. 

"We  have  in  Russia  a  great  many  devoted  girls, 
full  of  abnegation ;  but  their  sincere  earnestness  makes 
them  timid  ;  they  think  too  little  of  themselves.  And 
see,  how  beautiful  is  the  character  and  how  multiple 
the  capacities  of  our  Aunt  Isabel,  and  yet  she  never 
minds  it,  never  cries  out,  when  in  her  place  a  man 
would  be  a  celebrity  known  all  the  world  over.  And 
remark  that  her  mental  activity  does  not  prevent  her 
from  exercising  her  womanly  feelings  and  being  tender 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    189 

towards  all  with  whom  she  sympathizes.  The  female 
organism,  as  well  as  the  habit  of  observing  and  analyz- 
ing, makes  us  women  more  inclined  to  sympathize 
with  the  feelings  of  others.  The  mode  of  life  in  every 
country  has  made  the  men  more  bureaucratic,  more 
formalists,  and  more  hardhearted.  Undoubtedly  a 
reasonable  education  will  by  and  by  modify  this  differ- 
ence between  the  sexes ;  and  also  the  female  sex  will 
become  stronger  in  mind  and  body. 

"I  remember  always  how  beautiful  and  how  heavenly 
sweet  and  splendid  was  our  best  woman,  Lucy  Stone, 
the  ornament  of  the  human  race. 

"My  health  is  still  improving.  The  rheumatism 
and  neuralgia  are  insignificant  during  the  summer; 
and  my  splendid  lodging,  which  awaits  me,  will  render 
me  safe  during  the  winter  too,  with  the  aid  of  your 
flannels. 

"I  have  a  dinner  every  day  now,  and  feel  strong 
and  lofty,  as  if  I  were  a  princess,  young  and  rich  and 
proud.  The  calf  which  is  pasturing  in  my  courtyard 
has  become  a  friend  of  mine,  and  I  prance  before  him 
like  another  calf." 

To  Lillian  D.  Wald.     August  29-September  11, 1911. 

"Beloved  and  esteemed  friend,  Miss  Wald: 

"How  rich  you  have  made  me,  sending  me  such  a 
beautiful  choice  of  magazines,  which  now  (and  with 
every  day  more)  begin  to  be  a  source  of  delight  to 
many  people  at  a  great  distance !  Yesterday,  for 
instance,  there  was  with  me  a  mother  on  her  return 
from  Yakutsk,  where  she  had  visited  her  exiled  son 
of  twenty-two  years  old,  who  in  learning  English 
feels  an  absolute  want  of  English  literature.  There 


190    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

are  other  boys  who  share  this  study,  and  all  will  be 
quite  comfortable  when  they  receive  from  me  the 
interesting  Rest  Evening  and  the  Atlantic. 

"Yesterday,  too,  the  Independent  and  the  Public 
were  sent  to  the  professor  of  whom  I  wrote  to  my  Alice. 
He  is  a  fine  man,  highly  educated.  He  does  not  wish 
to  forget  the  foreign  languages,  and  reads  eagerly  the 
English  literature  that  is  so  scarce  in  Siberia,  es- 
pecially among  the  moors  and  woods  where  we  are 
settled. 

"The  rest  of  the  magazines  are  with  me,  but  they 
do  not  serve  me  alone.  Among  the  newcomers  (who 
do  not  cease  to  arrive)  some  can  do  well  enough  to 
be  able  to  profit  by  the  rich  stock  in  my  room.  And, 
making  mistakes  myself  at  every  phrase,  I  teach 
them  how  to  pronounce,  remembering  some  principles 
that  I  got  from  Aunt  Barrows,  when  in  New  York. 
What  an  excellent  teacher,  what  an  incomparable 
adviser,  what  a  wise  corrector  she  is ! 

"And  myself,  when  tormented  by  the  mischiefs 
surrounding  us,  I  have  recourse  to  the  magazines,  so 
richly  illustrated,  and  spend  hour  after  hour  in  read- 
ing, commenting,  fancying  about  far-off  people  and 
countries.  They  give  much  material  to  think  of,  to 
laugh  over.  The  pictures  in  some  periodicals,  and 
their  covers,  so  splendidly  painted,  have  been  presents 
and  surprises  to  a  number  of  children  (even  boys  of 
mine),  whose  bare  log  walls  are  ornamented  with 
what  makes  the  chamber  much  more  cheerful. 

"I  wished  to  make  an  album  out  of  the  quantity 
of  postcards  I  get  from  America,1  but  seeing  how 

1 1  was  in  the  habit  of  enclosing  in  my  weekly  letter  to  her  a  bunch  of 
picture  postcards.  A.  S.  B. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    191 

much  pleasure  it  gives  to  every  one  to  have  some 
with  him,  some  pretty  things,  I  resolved  to  treat  my 
poor  guests  by  giving  two,  three,  or  four  cards  to 
every  one.  Some  have  sisters  and  brothers  at  home, 
and  use  the  cards  when  writing  to  them.  Others 
choose  some  subject  to  keep  it  on  their  wall,  before 
their  table.  Many  of  them  are  living  five  or  six  in 
one  room,  little  and  dirty.  These  keep  their  cards 
in  their  pockets.  When  they  are  working  hard,  their 
better  clothes  are  left  at  home,  and  the  cards  within. 
So  much  for  the  printed  matter  and  pictures;  but  I 
have  myself  a  superior  gift  from  your  country,  the 
letters  showing  so  much  interest  in  a  far-off  old  woman, 
buried  in  a  little  wild  spot,  where  she  is  destined  to 
live  henceforward  —  I  will  not  say,  destined  to  die. 

"This  correspondence  enlarges  to  a  high  degree  the 
world  of  my  acquaintances,  of  my  sympathies,  and 
the  traveling  of  my  fancies.  It  engages  me  to  feel 
myself  as  if  living  amidst  a  large  society  full  of  faces 
that  are  smiling  and  greeting  me  with  the  cordiality 
of  true  friends. 

"The  little  freedom  left  to  me  is  restricted  more 
and  more.  As  the  days  begin  to  be  short,  I  shall 
have  very  few  hours  to  move  about.  All  the  evenings 
will  be  spent  in  my  room,  for  I  have  been  told  that 
the  spies  following  me  everywhere  are  not  to  remain 
in  the  street  during  my  visits,  as  they  have  till  now, 
but  are  to  penetrate  into  the  courts  of  the  people 
whom  I  visit.  And  as  nobody  is  pleased  to  have 
spies  looking  into  the  windows,  I  prefer  to  remain 
alone  in  my  own  cabin.  And  when  alone  I  try  to  call 
up  all  that  is  dear  and  agreeable.  The  mail  vivifies 
my  imagination,  which  transports  me  into  a  less  rude, 


192    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

less  rough  environment.  In  October  there  will  be  no 
mail.  The  stock  of  magazines  and  some  stuff  for  mak- 
ing shirts  and  trousers  for  the  boys  will  fill  my  leisure. 

"  August  31-September  13. 

"I  am  sure  you  have  printed  some  articles  on  your 
visit  to  China  and  Siberia.  If  so,  I  should  read  them 
with  interest.  Four  intelligent  women,  such  as  you 
were,  must  have  caught  a  lot  of  impressions  during 
such  a  long  journey,  which  afforded  half  a  world  to 
be  examined.  China  and  Russia  were  for  a  long 
time  terra  incognita  to  the  rest  of  mankind.  Never- 
theless there  was  a  superstition  against  them,  especially 
concerning  the  Russian  people,  who  were  known,  even 
in  1905  (the  year  I  was  with  you),  as  a  conglomerate 
of  hordes  of  Kirghis  and  Tartars.  Nobody  was  willing 
to  believe  me,  when  I  represented  my  folk  as  intelligent 
enough  to  desire  improvement.  Although  in  these 
last  seven  years  a  vast  progress  has  been  made  in  the 
historical  beliefs  and  the  political  vigilance  of  these 
millions  of  minds,  yet  our  inherited  slowness  follows 
us. 

"My  greetings  to  all  the  inhabitants  of  your  settle- 
ment, and  God  bless  them  !  " 

To  Mrs.  Barrows.    September  26-October  13,  1911. 

"Once  more  and  once  more  I  have  gone  over  the 
list  of  Jaeger  goods,1  and  I  get  more  and  more  af- 
frighted at  the  cost  that  will  be  paid  for  my  sake. 
Too  many  things,  too  much  dress!  I  have  not  the 
habit. 

1  Mrs.  Barrows  had  arranged  to  have  a  complete  suit  of  Jaeger  flannels 
«ent  to  her. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    193 

September  30-October  13. 

"When  you  described  to  me  your  summer  walks, 
so  richly  ornamented  with  splendid  scenery,  and  when 
I  look  at  the  cards  and  pictures  coming  to  me  from 
America,  Switzerland,  England,  France,  from  the 
Caucasus  or  Central  Asia  (Tashkend),  I  am  delighted, 
and  I  wonder  how  people  feel  if  they  live  in  such 
beautiful  places.  It  is  impossible  to  admire  every 
time,  for  you  will  have  no  time  to  do  anything  else; 
but  it  is  impossible  to  remain  indifferent,  either,  when 
facing  such  a  gallery  of  supreme  pictures. 

"When  I  have  before  me  a  splendid  view,  I  feel 
myself  thrown  into  a  beatitude  akin  to  consternation, 
as  if  I  were  before  a  piece  of  witchcraft  that  turned  a 
commonplace  into  a  miracle.  It  only  shows  that  our 
own  country  is  lacking  in  scenery.  Russia,  except  for 
some  of  its  conquered  territories,  is  a  flat  and  monotonous 
land,  where  the  eye  searches  for  a  new  point,  a  relief,  a 
more  vivid  color,  a  picturesque  group  of  trees.  Perhaps 
this  equality  of  lines  and  tints,  this  ever-gray  nature,  has 
made  us  Russian  people  rather  dull,  with  a  tinge  of  mel- 
ancholy, our  fancy  always  dwelling  on  a  better  world. 

"I  believe  that  when  they  are  free,  our  people  will 
transform  the  country  into  a  garden.  The  soil  is 
rich  and  easy  to  cultivate,  and  beautiful  forests,  fields, 
and  farms  will  cover  the  plains,  while  in  the  moun- 
tains, like  those  of  the  Urals  and  Siberia,  there  are 
plenty  of  materials  proper  for  use.  But  now  nothing 
prospers.  The  forests  are  destroyed,  the  rivers  nearly 
impracticable  on  account  of  the  sands,  the  soil  badly 
tilled,  and  the  buildings  so  ugly  and  uncomfortable 
that  one  might  think  they  had  been  made  so  on  pur- 
pose. No  education,  no  good  examples. 


194    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"We  see  that  the  wild  people  are  so  faithful  to  their 
customs  that,  even  when  they  are  neighbors  of  more 
civilized  races,  they  do  not  want  to  make  any  changes. 
But  when  they  begin  to  accept  some  changes,  and 
begin  to  acknowledge  science,  then  it  is  not  hard  to 
introduce  innovations.  The  ice  is  broken,  the  waves 
can  flow  freely  and  rapidly. 

"Especially  is  dirt  abominable  to  one  who  had  the 
good  fortune  to  grow  up  in  a  clean  and  orderly  home. 
Too  much  dirt  is  painful  to  a  person  who  is  above  all 
delicacies.  And  when  I  think  how  good  it  will  be  in 
the  future,  I  represent  to  myself  all  over  the  country  a 
cleanness  and  neatness  that  will  make  it  possible  to 
sit,  to  walk,  to  eat  in  every  place  in  the  land.  It  is 
not  nature  itself,  but  the  dirt  and  disorder  which 
people  themselves  make,  that  is  so  disgusting.  There- 
fore I  do  not  like  the  life  of  the  big  towns,  where  there 
is  so  much  dirt  and  so  many  bad  smells.  You  will 
laugh  at  the  topic  of  my  letter.  Yet  it  is  not  wondrous, 
for  before  my  eyes  are  hedges,  palings,  dilapidated 
cabins  and  barns  and  stalls,  all  these  black  with  time 
and  rain,  and  covered  with  a  cloudy,  heavy  gray 
roof  that  seems  never  to  be  sunny.  And  yet  we  are 
pleased  with  rain  and  wet,  fearing  the  approach  of  a 
fiercer  enemy,  which  will  imprison  us  for  half  a  year. 

"We  have  now  some  young  women,  winning  their 
bread  by  sewing  linen  and  clothes.  An  American 
fashion  magazine  serves  them  very  well." 

Sometimes  she  cheered  her  friends  by  writing  gay 
bits  of  vers  libre  on  postcards : 

"Helena  dearest,  don't  be  sorry, 
Soon,  very  soon,  thanks  to  your  goodness, 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    195 

I  have  my  bath  in  my  own  room. 
And  soon  again  instead  of  linen 
I  shall  be  wrapped  in  Jaeger's  wool. 
The  samovar  will  wait  on  table, 
The  Chinese  tea  will  smell  the  best ; 
And  your  old  friend,  renewed,  reyounged, 
Absorbs  the  sugar,  milk  and  bread. 
She  could  have  many,  many  others 
Of  delicacies  of  the  world, 
But  the  old  stomach  is  so  trained 
That  can't  endure  no  sorts  of  dainties. 
But  for  the  space,  and  light,  and  air  — 
I  have  them  for  the  rest  of  life. 

Dearest  friend ! 

I  will  be  merciful  and  never  more 
Write  in  verses.     Forgive  me." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.    October  4-17. 

"You  see  me  dancing, 
You  see  me  prancing ! 
The  Jaegers  are  coming, 
I  have  the  notice ! 

In  some  days  there  will  be  in  my  new  dwelling  a  shop 
of  clothes  and  beautiful  things  !  And  now,  my  daugh- 
ter, you  must  be  at  ease.  Your  old  Catherine  will  be 
soon  like  a  cocoon,  from  head  to  foot  accoutered  with 
wool.  No  frost  of  Siberia  can  hurt  her  more." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     (Undated) 

"  I  have  read  'The  Ballad  of  the  Brave  Man*  over 
and  over,  and  wondered  why  you  could  not  write  all  you 
know  about  your  mother,  that  blessed  and  holy  woman, 
in  similar  ballads  ?  Every  act  and  circumstance  of 
her  life  could  be  chanted  as  a  psalm.  It  might  be  done 
in  two  parts :  (1)  a  short  and  compact  chronology  of 


196    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

the  events  of  her  life;  (2)  a  thick  book  composed  of 
many  ballads,  describing  her  acts,  her  experiences, 
her  sufferings  and  success,  with  all  the  love  and  admira- 
tion you  keep  in  your  heart  for  this  woman,  who  re- 
mains till  now  a  unique  example  of  energy  and  clever- 
ness, devotion  and  love. 

"Be  not  afraid  to  profane  a  great  cause  or  a  great 
character  by  setting  it  forth  in  a  simple  style,  full  of 
plainness,  and  feelings  of  tender  love.  Everything 
great  is  sympathetic  with  what  is  natural  and  comes 
from  the  depths  of  our  souls. 

"  I  often  ask  myself  how  I  would  write  the  biography 
of  a  great  spirit,  and  I  always  feel  that  not  the  details 
of  the  material  side  of  the  hero  would  prosper,  but 
that  only  the  mental,  the  spiritual  world  which  was 
his  own,  could  flourish  under  my  pen.  One  must  write 
as  for  himself,  with  earnestness  and  freedom  of  feel- 
ing, as  the  bird  sings  its  song.  When  we  read  the  old 
ballads,  the  sayings,  legends,  psalms  and  descriptions 
of  the  lives  of  saintly  people,  we  are  more  touched  and 
impressed  than  when  we  read  very  serious  accounts 
of  the  world  and  the  acts  of  any  famous  character. 
The  personification  of  Lucy  Stone  is  a  spiritual  one 
now,  since  the  present  day  public  can  only  imagine 
her  being  and  her  face,  the  more  beautiful  and  attrac- 
tive for  not  being  set  forth  in  a  rude  and  rough  account, 
which  suffers  always  through  being  dry,  notwith- 
standing the  endeavor  of  the  writer  to  make  it  living 
and  gracious. 

"  In  recent  years  we  have  had  in  our  magazines  many 
memoirs,  biographical  sketches  and  descriptions  of 
the  most  remarkable  Russians  who  have  served  the 
cause  of  their  people.  And  the  best  are  those  that 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    197 

show  us  the  soul,  the  tastes,  moral  and  spiritual,  of 
the  person  described,  his  behavior  among  his  friends 
and  in  his  family;  in  a  word,  all  that  made  up  his 
inner  world,  the  complex  of  the  soul,  that  remains  in 
the  reader's  memory  like  a  celestial  light." 

To  Doctor  Tchaykovsky.     November  10,  1911. 

"I  wanted  to  write  you  a  cheerful  and  jolly  letter, 
as  both  these  states  of  mind  are  not  foreign  to  me. 
On  the  contrary,  it  is  a  long  time  since  I  have  laughed 
as  much  as  since  my  return  to  the  world  from  solitary 
confinement;  and  here  I  often  laugh  at  every  trifle, 
and  look  lovingly  at  the  few  youngsters  who  like  to 
take  care  of  me,  and  whom  I  like  to  see  about  me. 
But  just  on  account  of  these  youngsters  I  am  suffering 
a  good  deal  of  discomfort  at  present,  not  to  say  sorrow. 

"From  the  very  beginning  it  was  known  that  every 
one  calling  on  me  was  entered  in  the  'book  of  life.' 
In  time  it  came  to  the  notice  of  the  police  supervisor 
that  some  called  on  me  seldom,  others  more  frequently ; 
that  some  did  not  stay  long,  others  remained  to  chop 
wood,  sweep  out  the  rooms,  go  for  provisions,  or  else 
to  work  at  some  foreign  language,  or  sit  and  wait  until 
the  time  came  to  close  the  chimney  with  its  heavy 
flue-plates ;  or  else  to  take  the  old  lady  out  for  an  air- 
ing, or  to  the  bath-house  and  back.  Particularly  there 
was  a  young  man  living  within  a  mile  and  a  half  of  the 
town,  beyond  the  Lena,  supporting  himself  by  odd 
jobs,  with  a  little  help  from  his  relatives.  He  came 
every  day  after  dinner  for  two  or  three  hours ;  he  was 
very  kind  to  me,  and  very  attentive  to  all  my  house- 
hold needs.  He  got  into  trouble  once  because  he  had 
given  me  a  ride  in  his  boat  (it  was  only  in  the  beginning 


198    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

of  September),  and  now  he  is  being  constantly  reminded 
that  he  has  no  right  to  remain  in  the  city  after  8  P.M. 
I  have  already  told  you  that  only  those  few  exiles  who 
have  obtained  special  permission  live  in  Kirensk  itself, 
or  those  who  are  under  special  surveillance,  like  'poor* 
me ;  the  rest  have  to  live  on  the  other  side  of  the  rivers, 
and  go  a  long  way  to  their  work.  But  as  there  is  a 
dock  on  the  other  side  as  well,  many  work  there  in 
Glotow's  steamboat  shops,  and  in  the  town  there  are 
Gromov's  work-shops. 

"Well,  about  a  month  ago,  another  young  man  came, 
an  assistant  surgeon.  He  got  employment  as  a  car- 
penter at  the  city  wharf,  quickly  made  a  success  of 
his  trade,  and  was  already  in  hopes  that  by  the  end  of 
winter  he  would  master  all  the  secrets  of  carpentry 
and  house-painting,  and  in  the  spring  would  open 
a  shop  of  his  own.  Being  inclined  to  do  favors  for 
close  friends,  he  called  on  me  daily  after  his  work  and 
gave  me  massage;  in  the  afternoon  he  would  call  to 
take  his  scanty  portion  of  dinner,  so  as  not  to  have  to 
go  a  mile  and  a  half  to  attend  to  me.  It  appears  that 
this  sort  of  laborious  life  was  considered  a  crime :  the 
district  police  captain  has  taken  away  his  passport  (a 
yearly  one  for  travelling  over  the  district  of  Kirensk, 
which  he  had  just  obtained) ,  then  arrested  him,  impris- 
oned him,  and  on  Saturday  he  is  sending  him  away 
escorted  by  gendarmes  to  the  Mukhtuiskaya  district, 
700  versts  down  the  Lena  nearer  to  Yakutsk,  a  starv- 
ing settlement  where  there  is  no  work,  deserted  by  its 
own  population,  and  filled  with  convict  settlers  who 
think  it  less  dangerous  to  escape  from  there  and  be 
caught  again  than  to  remain  there  without  work  and 
without  bread. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    199 

"Then  again,  yesterday  and  to-day  they  are  sum- 
moning other  persons  also  to  the  police  for  examina- 
tion, a  short  list  of  seven  or  eight  names,  alleged  to 
be  people  particularly  intimate  with  me.  On  another 
list  all  those  who  visit  my  hut  are  recorded,  and  what 
will  be  done  with  them  I  cannot  imagine,  unless  they 
station  an  armed  guard  to  drive  away  all  those  who 
step  upon  my  grass-plots.  Aside  from  the  fact  that 
I  like  people  generally,  that  a  feeling  of  gratitude  is 
deeply  implanted  in  me,  that  distressed  young  lives 
are  particularly  affecting  to  me,  so  that  I  am  simply 
ashamed  to  be  the  cause  of  anybody's  misfortune  or 
trouble,  I  see  that  complete  loneliness  threatens  me 
within  a  short  time,  either  in  the  form  of  a  hut  prison 
here  in  Kirensk,  or  somewhere  in  Bulun,  on  the  Arctic 
Ocean,  where  they  send  exiles  for  complete  isolation. 
What  they  are  afraid  of  I  cannot  understand;  I  only 
know  that  I  would  rather  stay  in  Bulun  with  white 
bears  than  to  see  how,  on  account  of  me,  they  are  perse- 
cuting other  people  and  depriving  them  of  bread  and 
of  the  most  necessary  freedom.  They  are  even  going 
to  send  away  the  sick,  so  that  they  may  not  pass  by 
me  on  their  way  to  the  hospital. 

"All  their  tricks  are  the  fruits  of  an  idle  imagina- 
tion, and  the  attractive  prospect  of  honors  and  promo- 
tion. But  how  can  others  be  expected  to  endure  all 
these  pleasant  jokes  ?  I  personally  have  been  used  to 
these  conditions  during  all  my  long  life;  nothing  sur- 
prises me  nor  will  surprise  me.  But  young  hearts 
cannot  feel  themselves  as  well,  and  every  unexpected, 
unreasonable  blow  baffles  them,  and  leads  to  an  enor- 
mous loss  of  energy.  It  is  a  good  thing,  however, 
that  people  are  not  angry  with  me,  whence  come  all 


200    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

these  evil  machinations,  spreading  out  net  after  net  — 
plague  take  them ! 

"Send  me  not  only  magazines,  but  books.  There  is 
a  common  library  here,  but  through  the  preponderance 
of  foolish  voters  it  has  passed  into  the  hands  of  care- 
less people,  so  that  now  it  will  be  either  ruined  entirely 
or  reorganized  in  a  more  or  less  remote  future.  Since 
this  mess  was  made  before  my  time,  I  do  not  intend 
to  be  responsible  for  it,  the  more  so  as  I  should  be 
compelled  to  deal  with  various  antagonistic  interests. 
Therefore  I  prefer  to  receive  the  books  myself,  and  to 
give  them  to  whomever  it  seems  best,  keeping  order 
and  system.  Do  not  think  that  I  am  greedy  for  myself 
personally;  I  do  not  read  so  very  much,  only  what  is 
necessary ;  but  young  brains  need  food. 

"  Now  the  boasting  begins  :  To-day  at  last  came  the 
package  with  my  prison  belongings  (coat,  dresses,  etc.). 
Taking  into  account  things  sent  by  you  and  gifts  re- 
ceived on  the  road  here,  it  appears  that  I  have  half  a 
dozen  *  costumes,*  one  finer  than  the  other  —  such 
wealth  as  I  have  never  before  accumulated  since  I 
was  born.  I  have  hung  them  around  the  walls,  and 
I  look  at  them  and  think :  '  What  shall  I  do  with  all 
these  things,  even  if  I  should  order  a  wardrobe ! '  And 
as  for  handkerchiefs,  gloves,  little  rags  that  have  been 
sent  —  so  many  have  accumulated  that  I  can't  imagine 
where  to  put  them  all.  To  my  relief,  your  gingham 
will  go  for  shirts  for  the  boys  (I  intend  to  cut  as  many 
as  four  out  of  15  arshin). 

"The  new  handkerchiefs  I  have  given  away  to  neigh- 
bors who  have  been  kind  to  me,  and  everything  that 
is  old  I  have  kept  for  myself,  except  the  beautiful 
blanket,  which  I  hide  under  my  pillow  in  the  day  time, 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    201 

and  at  night  spread  over  my  ordinary  every-day  one, 
which  has  seen  many  things  in  its  time.  Even  my  old 
cloak  is  about  ready  to  go  into  retirement.  I  have 
acquired  two  wadded  coats  and  a  few  warm  skirts; 
in  a  word,  enough  to  get  married  on  (such  a  bride!), 
and  the  people  are  still  dissatisfied,  and  are  always 
grumbling :  '  A  fur  coat,  grandma,  a  fur  coat,  by  all 
means  a  fur  coat.'  I  will  show  them  a  fur  coat !  Soon 
I  shall  have  a  bear  skin  for  my  feet.  So  far,  nothing 
but  a  calf  skin  from  Yakutsk  lies  under  my  table  as 
a  beautiful  rug,  and  warms  my  feet,  which  are  clothed 
in  felt  shoes  and  rubbers.  The  hut  would  be  good  in 
every  respect  but  that  there  is  a  draft  from  the  floor 
and  the  cold  comes  in.  But  we  shall  overcome  that, 
with  the  bear's  help. 

"Heigh-ho  !  my  life  is  nothing  but  a  genuine  carnival. 

"Abundance  of  earthly  gifts,  and  the  sincere  love  of 
kind  friends  more  than  the  wickedness  of  the  enemies ; 
so  that  the  cup  of  joy  outweighs  that  of  bitterness. 
Just  now,  for  instance,  I  have  returned  from  my  walk 
carrying  in  my  hands  a  package  of  pies ;  one  made  of 
fish,  another  of  carrots ;  —  got  them  without  paying 
a  penny,  and  they  took  such  pleasure  in  wrapping  them 
up  in  a  newspaper !  And  if  my  clothes  have  to  be 
washed,  kind  women  are  found  (from  our  own  circle) 
who  will  take  them  and  wash  them.  But  I  myself 
like  to  freeze  my  washing  out  on  the  line  in  front  of 
my  window. 

"Oh,  what  a  great  surprise  my  hut  would  be  to 
Boris  and  Marusya !  Merely  the  heating  of  my  little 
stove  and  baking  potatoes  in  it  would  fill  up  many  hours 
with  the  most  pleasant  occupation.  The  tin  of  which 
my  samovar  is  made  even  reflects  the  moonlight 


202    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

during  the  night,  and  its  bright  shining  is  the  cause  of 
no  little  admiration.  And  the  small,  queer  cupboard, 
turned  on  one  side,  —  that  is  my  pantry ;  and  my 
small  windows,  consisting  of  a  lot  of  little  pieces  of 
glass ;  and  finally  a  hole  in  the  wall  opposite  the  stove, 
through  which  sometimes  the  bright  sunbeams  fall 
on  the  chips  of  wood  scattered  upon  the  stove.  This 
hole  is  open,  and  many  eyes  have  looked  through  it, 
how  many  that  are  not  known,  nobody  has  any  idea. 
But  neither  I  nor  anybody  else  objects,  since,  owing 
to  these  ventilators,  the  air  in  the  house  is  fine,  and  no 
one  ever  has  a  headache." 

George  Lazareff  to  Miss  Blackwell.     (Undated) 

"I  was  so  glad  that  Baboushka  had  found  in  the 
assistant-surgeon  Rogestwensky  a  very  useful  and 
devoted  man,  who  came  every  day  to  bandage  her 
swollen  legs.  But  the  local  authorities  found  he  was 
too  earnest  and  too  frequent  in  his  visits  to  her.  Sud- 
denly he  was  seized  and  sent  to  the  remotest  and 
worst  hole  of  the  district.  She  was  in  despair. 

"'What  for?'  she  cried.  'Miserable  executioners! 
Send  me  to  the  devil,  if  you  like,  but  why  do  you  tor- 
ture my  poor,  innocent,  and  generous  friends  and  com- 
rades, all  those  who  approach  me?' 

"Everybody  who  came  to  see  her  the  guards 
stopped,  and  asked  them  who  they  were  and  what  they 
came  for.  It  made  so  much  trouble,  not  only  for  her 
but  for  her  landlord,  that  nobody  liked  to  let  a  room  to 
her.  It  was  for  this  reason  that  she  lived  so  long  in 
a  miserable  half-rotten  hut,  which  she  liked  because 
it  was  solitary,  so  that  the  guards  did  not  bother  the 
hut-owner  —  the  hut  standing  apart,  with  the  windows 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    203 

looking  on  the  snowy  desert.  For  her  health's  sake 
I  insisted  that  she  should  find  a  more  comfortable 
lodging.  After  long  consideration,  she  decided  at 
last  to  do  it.  She  gave  me  two  weighty  objections. 
The  first  was  that  the  more  comfortable  lodging 
might  spoil  her  character  and  definitely  corrupt  her 
spirit.  She  would  live  in  a  comfortable  house  of  three 
neatly  furnished  rooms,  —  salons,  as  she  called  them ; 
meanwhile  some  of  the  other  exiles,  after  a  hard  and 
long  day's  work  (if  they  were  lucky  enough  to  have 
work)  could  hardly  find  a  hole  in  the  warm  stall  of 
some  native  to  spend  the  night.  If  she  could  take 
some  of  her  poor  comrades  into  her  lodging  to  live  with 
her,  how  happy  she  would  be !  Of  course  there  is  no 
legal  objection  to  it,  but  her  experience  with  her  com- 
rade, Assistant-surgeon  Rogestwensky,  to  whom  she 
wished  to  give  a  permanent  lodging  in  her  former 
miserable  hut,  had  taught  her  that  such  generosity 
on  her  part  would  cost  her  co-dweller  very  dear :  he 
would  be  removed  altogether  from  Kirensk.  Mean- 
while she  badly  needs  the  assistance  of  her  comrade 
exiles,  who  love  and  adore  her  as  their  mother,  as  the 
model  of  human  devotion  and  self-sacrifice. 

"In  her  last  letter  she  writes  me  that  she  has  changed 
her  lodging  at  last,  and  is  now  settled  in  her  three 
neatly  furnished  'salons.'  And  she  finds  her  expecta- 
tion is  fulfilled;  she  feels  herself  gradually  becoming 
corrupted.  The  criminal  thought  is  knocking  at  her 
mind,  how  nice  it  would  be  to  make  a  bath-room  out 
of  one  of  her  pretty  'salons'  and  to  furnish  it  with  a 
comfortable  bath-tub,  where  she  could  warm  her  sick 
legs !  One  of  her  comrades,  being  an  expert,  is  ready 
to  realize  this  ideal,  and  is  going  to  install  a  home-made 


204    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

tin  bath.  I  hope  she  is  now  so  corrupted  that  in  the 
next  letter  she  will  tell  me  of  the  realization  of  this 
great  enterprise.  She  cherishes  the  idea  that  her  com- 
rades will  find  an  opportunity  to  wash  their  poor  bodies 
free  of  charge  from  time  to  time,  and  to  enjoy  them- 
selves in  the  most  American  style.  You  see,  with 
money  in  hand  it  is  possible  even  in  the  Russian  hells 
to  get  some  comfort. 

"You  know  how  strictly  she  is  watched.  They  fear 
her  escape  from  Siberia.  Money  sent  to  her  all  at 
once  in  considerable  quantity  would  excite  suspicion. 
The  same  sum  of  money  divided  into  parts,  and  sent 
regularly  and  periodically,  would  seem  of  no  impor- 
tance to  the  local  authorities.  There  are  many  com- 
mon convicts  who  have  rich  relatives  and  receive 
much  money  from  them.  We  could  easily  send  to 
Baboushka  $100.  a  month,  if  we  had  it,  but  only  on 
condition  that  it  was  sent  regularly. 

"There  is  no  person  in  the  world  who  can  prevent 
her  from  doing  what  she  considers  her  duty.  Above 
all  things,  she  bothers  herself  in  visiting  sick  native 
people,  in  giving  them  good  advice  as  to  how  to  feed 
the  children,  and  so  on.  Very  often  she  carries  them 
her  milk,  part  of  her  own  daily  food.  In  answer  to  my 
reproaches  for  her  unreasonable  philanthropy,  she 
mocked  at  me,  saying  that  I  was  greatly  mistaken  in 
my  appreciation  of  her  conduct.  She  was  a  very  sly 
old  woman :  by  giving  a  trifle  to  these  poor  little 
wretches  around  her,  in  return  she  got  more  from  them 
for  herself.  They  are  so  stupid,  she  says,  as  to  bring 
her  all  the  sweets  they  can  get  in  that  arid  region; 
butter,  different  kinds  of  berries,  eggs,  little  cakes,  and 
so  on.  They  are  stupid,  because  she  is  only  one,  and 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    205 

cannot  give  them  much,  but  they  are  hundreds,  and 
little  by  little,  bit  by  bit,  they  bring  her  a  great  deal. 
And  they  help  her  with  so  much  zeal  and  love  (in  return 
for  her  pretended  attention),  that  she  cannot  help 
accepting  the  gifts.  'So,  in  the  long  run,  I  am  the 
gainer,'  she  concluded.  'Light  gains  make  heavy 
purses.'  In  a  word,  she  is  a  really  incorrigible  old 
woman.  However,  by  force  of  her  indomitable  energy 
and  good-natured  character  she  is  spreading  every- 
where an  atmosphere  of  consolation  among  the  suffer- 
ing people. 

"In  my  opinion,  the  agitation  in  America  at  present 
in  behalf  of  Baboushka,  old,  ill,  and  almost  dying, 
will  have  a  good  effect  in  the  mitigation  of  her  lot. 
They  might  let  her  live  in  some  warmer  town  of  Si- 
beria." 

"November  1-13,  1911. 
"  All  my  beloved  friends  ! 

"Like  a  queen  in  a  palace,  like  a  princess  in  an  arm- 
chair, like  a  scholar  before  a  large  table,  surrounded 
by  magazines,  papers,  letters,  and  a  lot  of  beautiful 
post-cards  is  sitting  your  old  Catherine,  proud  and 
happy,  strong  and  well.  All  October  she  was  mute, 
enjoying  her  new  dwelling,  where  she  is  as  comfortable 
as  one  can  imagine.  A  large  room,  divided  into  four 
chambers,  represents  a  house  that  would  suit  a  person 
of  much  greater  pretensions.  It  would  take  a  great 
deal  of  inspiration  to  depict  all  the  benefits  of  my  new 
apartment.  This  letter  will  announce  only :  (1) 
Having  space  enough  to  walk  from  one  corner  of  my 
house  to  another  (passing  through  three  chambers 
and  a  line  of  30  feet)  —  I  remain  at  home  all  the  time, 


206    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

having  no  desire  to  take  cold  and  to  get  the  influenza. 
The  same  cause  forced  me  to  order  a  bath,  which  \\ill 
stand  in  one  of  my  chambers  and  will  be  heated  by  a 
little  engine,  attached  to  one  of  its  ends,  so  that  the 
traveling  of  half  a  mile  to  take  a  bath  (as  last  winter) 
is  excluded  from  my  pastime. 

"There  is  only  one  brick  stove  in  the  centre  of  the 
four  rooms.  It  is  large,  and  without  the  aid  of  the 
old  cobbler  it  would  be  difficult  to  get  it  ready.  This 
old  friend  of  mine  returned  to  his  offices  near  my  per- 
son with  the  return  of  cold  weather.  Every  morning 
he  is  there  to  bring  wood,  to  get  water,  to  clean  and  to 
brush  all  my  apartments.  Many  chairs,  many  tables, 
one  commode,  and  a  kitchen  with  a  fireplate  (an  iron 
disc  on  which  all  can  be  cooked)  ...  all  that  depends 
on  his  activity  and  zeal.  We  have  a  samovar  now,  and 
drink  tea  together,  but  as  for  cooking,  we  don't  occupy 
ourselves  with  such  trifles.  My  various  friends  bring 
me  very  often  every  sort  of  food. 

"  (2)  I  wish  to  tell  you  what  I  received  during  Octo- 
ber from  America,  that  great  and  benevolent  country 
that  fills  my  existence  with  surprises,  caresses  and  en- 
dowments of  all  kinds.  Many  letters  were  received, 
and  many  cards.  The  magazines  reached  me  safely, 
and  were  much  read  by  myself  and  by  many  other 
exiles,  who,  learning  that  I  have  a  lot  of  them,  ask  for 
them  from  various  parts  of  Siberia.  I  send  them, 
being  proud  and  content.  The  two  excellent  books 
from  Chicago,  with  a  letter  from  my  Starr,  gave  me 
real  joy,  for  I  longed  for  news  of  her.  All  my  visitors 
are  surprised  to  see  such  a  quantity  of  printed  and 
written  riches.  I  only  smile  and  enjoy  it  in  my  heart. 
But  all  the  Russian  material,  except  the  letters,  is 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    207 

immediately  distributed  among  the  visitors,  who 
come  from  several  near-by  places,  and  take  it  to  be 
read  by  all  the  comrades  in  the  vicinity.  They  keep 
robbing  me  to  the  very  last,  and  when  I  see  anything 
very  interesting,  I  hastily  stick  it  under  my  pillow, 
and  when  alone  I  hurry  to  read  it,  before  I  am  robbed 
of  it.  But  my  English  literature  is  with  me.  Never 
one  little  scrap  of  English  printed  paper  has  been  lost 
or  destroyed  by  my  hand.  One  of  my  tables  is  cov- 
ered with  heaps  of  books,  and  magazines,  and  the 
Evening  Post,  before  being  sent  to  Yakutsk  and  other 
parts  of  East  Siberia.  Life  and  Labor  l  is  my  favorite, 
and  the  National  Geographic  Magazine  enjoys  the 
favor  of  everyone  for  its  splendid  pictures.  One  young 
man  is  going  to  photograph  them  and  make  them  fit 
to  be  shown  in  the  magic  lantern. 

"You  are  all  working  too  hard:  meetings,  readings, 
visitings,  writing  and  establishing  new  and  new  settle- 
ments and  different  places  of  help  and  education  — 
it  is  too  much  for  the  same  persons,  already  tired  and 
exhausted  by  a  work  of  twenty  or  thirty  years.  Now 
you  must  only  survey  the  work  of  young  people,  and 
bring  them  up  to  be  able  to  take  your  places,  and  to 
continue  what  you  began. 

"There  is  a  change  concerning  my  custody:  now 
there  are  four  spies  going  around  my  house  and  look- 
ing into  my  windows.  Two  accompany  me  when  I  go 
out.  This  escort  is  so  disgusting  that  I  have  no  wish 
to  walk  out  of  doors.  What  they  are  afraid  of,  I  don't 
know !  I  see  only  that  they  think  me  able  to  vanish 
like  a  cloud  before  their  eyes." 

*  *  The  organ  of  the  National  Woman's  Trade  Union  League,  edited  by 
Alice  Henry. 


208    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

To  Mrs.  Barrows.     November  8-21,   1911. 

"Do  you  know  where  the  crabs  are  wintering?1 
I  see  you  do,  while  examining  my  new  wardrobe, 
brought  to  me  from  the  post  office  yesterday  after- 
noon. It  was  a  glorious  apparition,  which  enchanted 
all  the  boys  that  were  occupied  with  the  matter;  for 
the  package  was  big  and  heavy.  The  goods  were  so 
well  wrapped  that  everything  is  as  fresh  as  if  just  out 
of  the  shop.  Even  the  paper  and  the  cardboard  are 
safe  enough  to  be  used  by  our  bookbinders.  Every- 
one touched  the  stuff,  and  everyone  was  sincerely  glad 
to  know  that  grandmother  will  be  clad  as  warmly  as 
one  could  desire.  I  am  sure  the  whole  winter  there 
will  be  examination  and  appreciation.  It  is  the  first 
time  in  my  life  that  I  have  had  such  beautiful  things 
for  myself.  This  very  letter  I  am  writing  enveloped 
in  the  delicious  overcoat,  fearing  no  frosts,  weather 
or  storm.  The  old  cobbler,  Platon,  my  faithful  ser- 
vant when  sober,  laughed  and  cheered,  examining  the 
big  shoes  I  received,  and  did  not  dare  to  touch  with 
his  rough  hands  the  exquisite  Jaeger's  linen  displayed 
on  my  table.  'Oh,'  said  he,  *  did  your  friends  in 
America  get  the  photograph  of  your  old  cabin  ?  They 
would  be  as  much  astonished  to  live  in  it  as  we  should 
be  to  wear  such  beautiful  linen !  * 

"Everything  of  best  material  and  skilfully  made. 
Even  the  duties  were  paid.  So  I  got  a  quantity  of 
foreign  goods  without  paying  a  kopek  for  them.  All 
this,  thanks  to  persons  who  not  only  know  where  the 

crabs  are  wintering,  but  who  can  arrange  the  matter 

/ 

1  A  Russian  proverb  concerning  people  who  know  where  to  find  the  best 
things. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    209 

so  finely  that  the  receiver  has  no  trouble ;   he  has  only 
to  take  and  to  use. 

"Yours  for  ever." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     November  20-December  3,  1911. 

"Certainly  the  women  of  the  United  States  are 
remarkable  for  their  energy  and  cleverness !  The 
campaign  carried  on  in  California  by  the  suffragists 
is  a  whole  epopee  in  the  life  of  your  people.  It  is  a 
beautiful  example  for  countries  where  the  political 
institutions  allow  people  to  act  with  an  endeavor  so 
largely  developed. 

"The  portraits  of  Miss  Addams  and  Miss  Black- 
well  were  such  a  charming  surprise  to  me,  such  wel- 
come guests  among  many  others,  many  beautiful 
women  !  In  my  room,  large  and  convenient,  I  received 
them  all  heartily,  and,  sitting  alone  during  the  long 
evening,  in  a  corner  near  the  stove,  I  held  a  long  con- 
versation with  both  girls  on  a  series  of  interesting  topics 
which  occupy  my  mind. 

"November  29.  For  instance,  since  I  got  the  leaflets 
about  the  work  done  by  Denison  House,  I  thought 
very  often  of  the  great  difficulty  of  fulfilling  as  well 
as  one  wishes  all  the  enterprises  we  take  upon  us  in 
doing  so  many  things  at  once.  So  much  hard  work 
and  such  large  outlays  do  not  show  to  the  world  the 
results  of  a  sane  and  clever  education  of  children, 
which  question  is  the  most  serious  among  those  that 
concern  our  race.  And  I  am  sure  that  this  question 
can  be  solved  only  outside  of  the  life  of  the  big  towns. 

"The  children  that  have  grown  up  far  from  contact 
with  country  life,  from  all  that  composes  so-called 
*  nature,'  are  only  half  of  a  human  being  in  its  com- 


210    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

pleteness.  The  children  of  the  well-to-do  have  the 
possibility  of  traveling  and  seeing  many  sides  of 
country  life.  And  yet  they  are  not  (on  the  whole) 
so  richly  endowed  as  the  children  of  farmers.  As 
for  the  poor  children,  they  grow  up  in  the  large  cities 
like  little  apes,  never  thinking  about  the  beautiful  and 
marvellous  scenery  of  the  great  world.  All  our  great 
men  (in  science,  literature  and  social  life)  are  natives 
of  the  provinces ;  all  the  best  scholars,  the  most  active 
workers  in  every  kind  of  social  activity  are  people  who 
grew  up  outside  of  the  capital  cities  and  large  towns. 
There  are  exceptions,  as  always,  but  they  are  so  few 
that  I  could  not  cite  an  example.  In  a  country  as 
free  as  yours,  why  not  make  experiments,  why  not 
establish  some  institutions  (settlements)  for  poor 
children  and  orphans  in  some  wholesome  country  dis- 
trict, where  all  this  large  family  would  constitute  one 
farming  association  ?  The  little  ones  would  learn  how 
to  work,  the  biggest  would  study  and  work  at  the  same 
time;  several  handicrafts  might  flourish,  too.  The 
arts  would  be  an  every-day  luxury.  Such  an  institu- 
tion would  be  a  splendid  proof  of  the  possibility  of 
producing  a  race  of  men  able  to  be  useful  in  every 
place  and  in  every  state  of  life. 

"I  do  not  say  that  the  settlements  you  have  now  are 
not  necessary.  I  only  wish  that  your  women  might 
show  the  world  what  is  the  best  mode  of  education 
while  we  are  living  under  the  conditions  of  this  century. 

"December  4-17,  1911. 

"I  have  a  telegram  that  I  am  to  receive  a  pelisse 
and  a  watch.  Never  was  I  so  rich. 

"Pray  tell  Helena  I  embrace  her  from  my  soul. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    211 

Her  kindness,  her  delicacy  in  connection  with  every 
one  is  remarkable.  I  love  people  in  general,  but  good 
people  are  my  delight,  and  I  don't  need  to  see  them, 
to  know  them  personally,  in  order  to  love  them  sin- 
cerely and  strongly. 

"It  is  wonderful  to  me  how  much  your  women  can 
do,  and  have  time  to  enjoy  parties  and  visiting.  Full 
of  energy. 

"I  never  heard  of  Isabel's  son  before,  and  was  sure 
she  had  only  one  daughter.  I  am  very  glad  she  has  a 
son ;  it  is  a  great  comfort  to  have  such  a  near  friend 
and  companion." 

To  Miss  Dudley.     December  15-25,  1911. 

"Our  dear  Euphemia  and  you  will  send  me  some 
cards.  Very  glad !  They  give  such  great  amusement 
to  my  young  friends.  They  are  fond  of  symbolic 
pictures.  The  Slavonic  mind  is  very  poetical ;  and 
all  that  recalls  the  beauty  and  greatness  of  the  world 
is  eagerly  sought. 

"But  the  goodness  of  my  American  friends  grows 
greater  and  greater,  and  I  am  afraid  I  shall  be  spoiled. 
Yesterday  the  mail  brought  me  a  little  bag  in  which 
I  found  violet  soap,  ribbon  dental  cream,  violet  talcum 
powder,  cold  cream,  and  a  bottle  for  hot  water.  This 
reminded  me  of  Lucy  Smith's  present,  which  I  found 
once  on  my  table  when  I  occupied  her  room.  I  would 
be  so  happy  to  embrace  this  very  angel  of  a  girl,  and 
take  her  on  my  lap,  and  kiss  her  over  and  over." 

"  December  16. 

"Where  will  you  go,  what  new  work  is  to  torment 
you  farther?  Dear  friend,  it  is  enough  of  sacrifice; 


212    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

you  must  live  as  long  as  possible,  and  not  wear  out 
your  health.  It  is  a  desolate  situation  to  know  one's 
best  friends  on  the  verge  of  peril,  and  to  be  sure  they 
never  will  take  care  of  their  safety !  I  very  often  fear 
to  hear  that  your  health,  that  of  Aunt  Isabel,  that  of 
our  Alice,  is  declining.  Many  persons  in  your  country 
are  dear  to  me.  But  you  three  were  especially  good 
to  me,  and  so  kindly  good  that  I  became  familiar  with 
you,  as  if  we  had  understood  and  loved  each  other 
from  the  beginning  of  the  world.  I  am  never  sure 
I  shall  not  hear  something  bad  concerning  your  health. 
Don't  think  I  am  in  the  same  condition  as  you  are. 
I  do  not  strain.  I  have  been  working  all  my  life  like 
a  Southern  ox  (such  as  our  peasants  labor  with)  that 
goes  his  pace,  no  faster,  no  slower,  never  tired,  but 
never  much  at  once.  Consequently  my  strength  is 
better  conserved.  The  work  of  all  three  of  you  is,  on 
the  contrary,  a  work  of  race-horses,  with  the  great  dif- 
ference that  race-horses  are  well  nourished,  very  well 
looked  after,  and  tenderly  nursed,  while  you  three 
run  without  rest,  and  without  that  necessary  comfort 
of  soul  which  can  be  gained  only  by  a  leisure  which 
occurs  often  and  gives  us  time  to  collect  our  thoughts, 
feelings,  impressions,  and  conclusions.  I  could  not  be 
myself  without  such  conditions." 


CHAPTER  XIV 

George  Lazareff  to  Miss  Blackwell.   December  20, 1911. 

"There  are  two  classes  of  exiles  in  Siberia.  Those 
who  have  been  banished  by  administrative  order, 
without  trial,  are  sent  for  terms  of  not  more  than  five 
years  to  the  remotest  part  of  the  empire,  as  dangerous 
persons,  and  are  temporarily  deprived  of  all  their  civil 
rights.  They  are  given  a  money  allowance  by  the 
government,  the  amount  varying  with  their  rank  and 
with  their  place  of  exile,  which  they  may  not  leave. 
They  are  under  constant  surveillance. 

"The  second  class  of  exiles  have  been  tried  and 
banished  for  life,  and  are  permanently  deprived  of 
their  civil  rights.  They  receive  no  money  from  the 
government,  but  after  they  have  stayed  for  six  months 
in  an  appointed  place,  they  are  entitled  by  law  to 
receive  a  passport  authorizing  them  to  live  where  they 
please  in  their  district,  and  to  travel  about  and  look  for 
work. 

"Baboushka  belongs  to  the  second  class,  but  she  is 
illegally  deprived  of  all  its  privileges,  and  has  to  bear 
the  worst  features  of  the  treatment  of  both  classes. 
She  gets  no  money  from  the  government,  yet  she  is 
not  allowed  to  choose  her  place  of  residence,  nor  to 
travel  about,  nor  even  to  go  freely  through  the  streets 
of  the  miserable  little  town  of  Kirensk;  and  she  is 
watched  continually  by  police  spies." 

213 


214    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OP  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

Picture  card  l  to  Miss  Blackwell.     December  30, 
1911-January  12,  1912. 

"This  is  the  greatest  festival  of  the  Yakuts;  the 
young  horses  will  be  killed,  roasted,  and  eaten. 

"A  beautiful  fur  coat  and  a  clock  with  a  bell  have 
been  received.  I  remember  Miss  Wald  said  something 
about  it.  My  thanks  to  her.  The  Christmas  was  a 
merry  one.  Nobody  was  hungry  nor  cold,  —  I  mean 
my  company. 

"La  Follette's  autobiography  is  beautiful,  —  a  splen- 
did man.  'The  Eleventh  Hour' 2  that  I  got  to-day  is 
dear  to  my  heart.  Julia  Ward  Howe  was  a  wonder." 

To  Mrs.  Barrows.     January  5-18,  1912. 

"The  Survey  was  received,  and  your  article  on  the 
prisons  read  first  of  all.  If  you  knew  all  the  truth  about 
our  places  of  confinement,  what  horrible  scenes  would 
engross  your  descriptions  of  what  occurs  there,  where 
many,  many  thousands  of  our  best  youths  are  dying ! 

"January  11-24. 

"  Already  your  letter  with  the  news  about  the  death 
of  our  Durland  has  come  to  me,  and  this  letter  of  mine 
is  not  finished.  Why  ?  Never  alone !  never  alone ! 
I  do  not  complain,  for  I  feel  and  understand  that  the 
constant  visitation  of  our  people  is  the  only  good  that 
can  be  done.  From  9  A.M.  to  9  P.M.  I  must  give  all 
my  attention  to  the  needs  of  others,  after  which 
pastime  I  am  tired,  and  able  only  to  read  papers  or 
articles.  Thanks  to  the  money  I  have  received  from 

1  The  picture  on  the  card  shows  a  crowd  of  Siberian  natives  standing 
around  some  shaggy  horses. 

*  By  Mrs.  Howe's  daughter,  describing  her  last  years. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    215 

my  American  friends,  I  eat  well,  I  have  had  many 
comfortable  novelties.  And  with  my  Jaeger  clothes,  my 
pelisse,  and  a  young  lady  who  takes  me  every  day  at 
noon,  I  go  out  to  walk  and  breathe  the  pure,  fresh  air. 
"Durland  was  a  good  heart.  What  a  pity!  When 
I  see  one  of  my  boys  failing,  I  suffer  much.  I  scold 
them  often  and  hard.  I  never  knew  you  had  a  son 
before  you  wrote  it  me  this  autumn.  How  glad  I  am 
he  is  a  good  boy !  Mabel  is  a  noble  soul.  I  remember 
her,  and  her  husband  too,  though  I  saw  him  only  once. 
Every  corner  of  your  residence  in  New  York  I  remember 
as  well  as  if  I  had  seen  it  yesterday." 

Doctor  Tchaykovsky  to  Miss  Blackwell.  January  20, 

1912 

"Baboushka  writes : 

"I  should  be  quite  contented  had  I  by  my  side 
always  a  dear  female  face  and  a  kind  heart.  For  an 
old  woman  like  myself,  often  ailing,  there  is  nothing 
more  soothing  than  a  caressing  female  hand.  To  help 
in  the  bath,  in  the  bed,  to  hand  food  or  drink,  to  sew 
or  to  cut  —  she  could  do  all,  my  darling ;  but  I  have 
no  such  darling,  and  there  is  no  chance  to  get  one 
here.  It  is  true,  it  would  be  very  lonely  for  her  to 
stay  here  with  an  old  woman  like  me,  always  exacting 
correctness,  economy,  foresight,  and  other  virtues. 
If  I  could  have  her  at  least  temporarily,  just  to  stay 
with  me,  so  that  I  could  feel  by  my  side  one  who  is 
quite  near  to  me;  some  one  who  could  take  care  of 
me,  instead  of  my  always  taking  care  of  others.  It 
is  true  there  are  many  here  who  remember  me,  who 
try  to  serve  me  or  to  bring  me  something  nice,  but  all 
this  is  done  occasionally,  in  a  hap-hazard  way,  and  it 


216    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

often  happens  that  I  have  either  too  much  of  every- 
thing, or  nothing  at  all.  There  is  no  constant  eye 
watching  how  I  behave  myself.  One  often  needs  to 
get  something,  to  send  somewhere,  to  run  to  the  post, 
to  the  shop,  to  an  outdoor  cupboard,  etc.  Of  course 
one  could  do  all  that  one's  self.  But  I  am  not  what  I 
used  to  be.  In  short,  I  am  too  old.' 

"And  again  on  December  12-25  she  writes:  *  What 
I  said  before  about  a  female  friend,  of  course  refers 
to  one  who  would  not  be  worried  by  staying  with  an 
old  woman,  who  would  be  prepared  to  stay  here,  say 
a  year,  or  at  least  half  a  year;  would  forgive  me  my 
grumbling,  and  exacting  correctness  and  economy  (but 
not  greediness  or  meanness,  of  course)  in  everything. 
Where  one  could  find  such  a  treasure,  I  don't  know. 
On  the  other  hand,  it  would  be  as  useful  for  her  to  pass 
through  a  school  of  care  and  attention  to  her  neigh- 
bors, for  it  would  not  be  of  myself  alone  that  she  would 
have  to  take  care  here,  but  of  many  others. 

"I  received  yesterday  twenty  rubles,  and  at  once 
bought  butter  and  sugar  —  the  greatest  expenses 
here.  It  is  remarkable  how  particular  our  boys  are. 
Those  who  have  work  or  a  position  will  not  touch  ,food 
in  my  hut,  but  only  those  who  are  unemployed." 

To  her  friends  at  Wellesley  College.     February  10, 

1912. 

"Wellesley  College  gave  me  one  of  the  greatest 
pleasures  I  ever  experienced.  When  I  was  there,  I 
found  one  of  the  most  beautiful  institutions  I  ever 
saw.  The  establishment  itself  is  perfect,  furnished 
with  all  the  improvements  of  the  last  word  of  pedagogy. 
But  what  charmed  me  most  of  all  was  the  body  of 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER   OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    217 

teachers  and  pupils.  When,  after  the  few  words  I 
spoke,  I  sat  with  my  cup  of  tea  in  the  salon,  where 
a  hundred  dear  young  faces  looked  at  me  with  friend- 
ship, with  sympathy,  I  felt  so  cheerful  and  familiar 
with  all  that  surrounded  me,  I  had  at  once  so  many 
words  to  say,  so  many  thoughts  to  express,  so  many 
feelings  to  discharge,  that  it  was  very  hard  for  me  to 
leave  the  dear  society  when  it  was  announced  that  the 
horses  were  at  the  door. 

"If  words  came  as  readily  as  ideas  and  feelings,  I 
could  say  ten  hundred  kindly  things. 

"'I  would  be  true,  for  there  are  those  who  trust  me; 
I  would  be  pure,  for  there  are  those  who  care; 
I  would  be  strong,  for  there  is  much  to  suffer ; 
I  would  be  brave,  for  there  is  much  to  dare.' 

"'I  would  be  a  friend  to  all  ...  I  would  look  up 
—  and  laugh  —  and  love  —  and  lift.' 

"'As  long  as  we  do  not  surrender  the  ideal  of  our 
life,  all  is  right.' 

"Is  thy  burden  hard  and  heavy?  Do  thy  steps 
drag  wearily  ?  Help  to  bear  thy  brother's  burden  .  .  .' 

"'Be  noble !  and  the  nobleness  which  lies 
In  other  men,  sleeping  but  never  dead, 
Will  rise  in  majesty  to  meet  thine  own.' 

"  *  When  courage  fails  and  faith  burns  low, 

And  men  are  timid  grown, 
Hold  fast  thy  loyalty,  and  know 
That  truth  still  moveth  on.' 

' '  Kind  hearts  are  the  gardens, 

Kind  thoughts  are  the  roots, 
Kind  words  are  the  blossoms, 
Kind  deeds  are  the  fruits.' " 


218    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"These  words  are  in  'The  Calendar  of  Friendship,' 
received  from  a  dear  friend.  I  quote  these  golden 
words  not  only  for  their  beauty,  but  also  I  have  ex- 
perienced them  all  my  life  as  an  irrevocable  truth. 

"After  my  visit  to  Wellesley  I  received  many  tokens 
of  friendship  from  its  inhabitants. 

"I  pray  you  both,  elder  and  young  ladies,  pardon 
me  for  my  long  silence.  I  recognize  my  fault  and  feel 
ashamed.  Oh !  my  ignorance  of  your  beautiful  lan- 
guage makes  me  miserable  very  often.  For  I  desire 
to  speak  with  you,  to  correspond  with  the  American 
women  whom  I  esteem  and  admire  now  more  than 
ever.  Their  energy  in  all  they  undertake  is  wonderful, 
and  is  an  example  to  the  women  of  all  the  world. 

"Accept  my  greetings,  lovely  ladies,  and  pardon 

"Your  friend 

"  Catherine  Breshkovsky." 

To  Miss  Dudley.  February,  1912.  (Written  on  the 
back  of  a  picture  postcard  representing  Jesus 
before  Pilate) 

'"Pilate,  after  having  heard  what  Jesus  said  to  him, 
asked  with  a  smile  of  doubt,  'And  what  is  'truth?' 
So  many  and  many  people,  wishing  to  preserve  their 
independence  of  action  in  things  that  flatter  their 
tastes  and  the  weak  sides  of  their  characters,  make 
the  same  suggestion,  in  the  hope  of  withdrawing  them- 
selves from  any  responsibility  towards  the  requests  of 
humanity.  And  yet  the  truth  is  born  with  us,  and 
lies  in  the  souls  of  all  sane  people,  and  teaches  us  to 
love  our  fellow  sisters  and  brothers,  and  to  do  to  them 
the  best  we  desire  for  ourselves.  And  we  see  that  only 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    219 

those  who  fulfill  this  law  of  our  nature  are  sincerely 
esteemed,  and  happy  even  in  their  distresses." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     February  24-March  8,  1912. 

"Women's  enfranchisement,  after  the  Chinese  rev- 
olution, is  in  my  opinion  the  greatest  event  of  our 
century,  as  regards  political  reform.  For  I  am  sure 
the  enfranchisement  of  women  must  be  followed  by  a 
store  of  new  reforms  for  the  welfare  of  humanity. 

"Yes,  this  century  from  its  very  beginning  has  been 
full  of  miraculous  events.  One  can  live  with  plenty 
of  sensations  without  even  taking  part  in  all  these 
beautiful  evolutions,  otherwise  than  by  surveying  and 
digesting  the  events  which  cover  the  earth  at  this 
moment.  I  feel  as  if  I  were  in  the  very  middle  of  all 
the  perturbations  which  threaten  to  overthrow  all 
the  old  prejudices  and  evils.  I  think  it  is  thanks  to 
this  faculty  of  pursuing  in  my  imagination  the  course 
of  life  in  general  that  I  conserve  that  verve  of  character 
which  is  familiar  to  me.  And  now,  besides  the  possi- 
bility of  following  the  course  of  progress,  I  have]  the 
good  fortune  to  have  many  relays  of  young  people 
around  me,  which  makes  me  mother  of  an  infinite 
family,  whose  members  are  in  a  state  of  everlasting 
circulation.  This  state  of  things  keeps  my  mind 
awake.  I  stay  like  a  watchman  on  my  post,  over- 
seeing on  every  side.  And  when  we  add  to  all  this 
my  personal  material  welfare,  and  the  possibility  of 
furnishing  what  is  most  necessary  to  those  who  are 
in  need,  one  can  understand  why  I  do  not  feel  cast 
down  or  mournful.  Not  one  of  our  exiles  is  so  richly 
off  as  I.  And  George  Kennan  is  quite  right  in  saying 
that  he  found  me  in  Selenginsk  lacking  all  the  com- 


220    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

forts  I  enjoy  now.  And  my  luxury  of  to-day  comes  from 
America.  For  my  Russian  friends  would  not  be  able 
to  send  me  so  much  money  and  such  beautiful  things. 

"This  month  is  a  cruel  one :  cold  and  wind  day  and 
night.  The  winter  is  so  long  and  unrelenting  (frost 
and  snow  the  whole  eight  months)  that  we  forget  the 
feeling  of  better  weather,  and  the  summer,  the  two 
months  of  warmth,  seems  to  us  a  far-off  dream. 

"Professor  Ely  and  his  wife!  I  see  them  both  at 
a  party,  or  a  musical  evening,  when  the  young  miss, 
his  bride  then,  stood  on  a  tabaret  and  spoke  nice 
things,  and  we  stood  around  her.  I  recollect,  too, 
how  angry  Mr.  Ely  was  with  me,  when,  confused,  I 
could  not  speak  on  my  life  in  Siberia  and  at  Kara. 
Everything  about  the  Americans  I  remember  as 
clearly  as  if  it  were  yesterday.  First,  I  was  eager  to 
see,  to  hear,  to  understand  the  characters,  customs, 
all  the  ways  of  life ;  secondly,  I  was  so  pleased  to  find 
a  friendly  reception,  so  pleased !  To  this  day  I  am 
always  surprised  to  be  welcomed,  beloved,  cherished. 
Therefore  every  token  of  friendship  and  love  is  to  me 
like  a  new  happiness  in  my  life.  I  have  always  wished 
and  strained  to  deserve  my  own  respect,  and  that  of 
honest  people,  but  I  look  upon  this  as  a  duty  common 
to  every  rational  being. 

"I  am  afraid  Lucy  Smith  is  gone.  What  a  sacred 
heart  it  was  !  A  very  saint.  I  am  afraid  about  Helena, 
too.  She  is  always  tormenting  herself  with  the  thought 
that  she  does  too  little,  giving  all  her  life  for  others, 
and  yet  imagining  herself  not  worthy  enough.  I  do 
not  think  so  about  myself.  I  look  at  it  in  this  way : 
Everyone  must  endeavour  to  be  useful,  but  nobody  is 
obliged  to  do  more  than  he  can. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    221 

"Oh,  your  old  Kitty  is  very  seldom  tired  of  life, 
and  she  needs  but  a  sparkle  of  light  to  feel  herself  as 
young  and  strong  as  ever." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     March  14-27,  1912. 

"If  this  were  not  such  a  cruel  climate,  which  uses 
up  so  much  strength  and  expense  for  food  and  cloth- 
ing, we  would  make  many  improvements  in  our  life, 
for  there  are  many  skilful,  strong  and  clever  people 
among  us;  but  without  money,  tools  or  provision,  it 
will  take  many  years  of  persevering  efforts  to  obtain 
any  amelioration.  All  you  earn  during  the  short 
summer,  you  eat  up  during  the  long  winter,  when  the 
country  presents  an  immense  bare  wilderness.  No 
plants  except  the  big  trees,  no  birds,  no  movement 
from  place  to  place,  except  the  mail  post,  speeding  on 
six  or  seven  sledges,  with  two  horses  to  each.  The 
caravan  runs  very  fast,  or  fast  enough,  considering 
the  state  of  our  roads,  always  very  bad.  The  little 
bells  ring  far  and  loud,  and  all  the  inhabitants,  espe- 
cially our  boys,  run  towards  the  post  office,  where  they 
receive  the  same  answer:  'Not  ready,  —  to-morrow.' 
It  is  absurd  to  see  how  slow  the  employees  of  all 
Russian  offices  are.  And  they  are  accustomed  to 
treat  the  public  like  intruders,  that  have  no  right  to 
ask. 

"The  last  two  months  my  health  has  been  much 
better.  The  clothes  you  sent  me  have  much  to  do 
with  this,  for  I  am  never  cold  now.  You  have  much 
to  do,  too,  with  my  present  position.  I  am  sure  my 
enemies  will  not  show  themselves  too  cruel  towards 
me.  Some  time  ago,  one  of  my  friends  wrote  me  that 
she  was  trying  to  have  me  removed  to  a  place  further 


222    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

south.  I  forbade  her  to  do  it,  and  got  for  answer : 
*Your  prohibition  came  too  late.  I  had  already  asked 
for  your  transfer  to  a  less  cold  place,  and  received  the 
reply  :  "Let  her  thank  God  that  she  is  in  Kirensk  and 
not  farther  north. ":  Yes,  and  I  think  I  should  be 
farther  north  but  for  the  tokens  of  friendship  I  get 
from  your  country. 

"In  some  days  it  will  be  Easter.  I  am  already  pre- 
paring pastry  and  meat  for  my  poor  guests  and  my- 
self. Now  that  my  excellent  Platon  is  too  often 
*  unwell ',  I  have  taken  a  young  girl  into  the  house ;  she 
dwells  with  me  and  serves  me.  Fifteen  years  old, 
she  could  not  read  or  write,  so  I  am  teaching  her. 
Then  she  sews  clothes  for  herself,  and  makes  flowers 
to  ornament  her  parents'  home.  She  is  a  Siberian 
native,  of  Slavonic  race.  But  the  Russian  peasants 
that  have  inhabited  Siberia  for  centuries  are  very 
different  from  those  of  Russia.  Here  they  become 
rough,  lacking  in  benevolence  and  gratitude,  and  al- 
ways suspicious.  It  is  the  result  of  a  severe  struggle 
with  wild  surroundings,  and  of  the  fact  that,  ever 
since  Siberia  came  under  the  Russian  government,  the 
officials  sent  to  rule  it  have  been  those  who  could  not 
be  tolerated  even  in  Russia.  Those  who  are  too  bad 
to  be  endured  there  are  sent  to  Siberia,  and  reign 
here  without  any  restraint.  In  consequence  the 
natives  look  on  everyone  coming  from  Russia  as  a 
scoundrel  and  a  brigand ;  for  Siberia  is  the  place  where 
all  the  convicts  are  settled.  No  wonder  the  'Tchal- 
dans'  (the  nickname  for  Siberian  people  of  the  Sla- 
vonic race)  have  a  strong  prejudice  against  anyone 
who  comes  from  Russia,  and  it  takes  time  before  the 
best  of  them  are  trusted.  Now,  the  number  of  good 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    223 

and  honest  people  who  constitute  the  majority  among 
our  exiles  have  made  a  favorable  impression  on  the 
population,  and  the  inhabitants  are  not  able  to  dis- 
tinguish a  true  'political'  from  a  false  one.  Hundreds 
of  such  are  here,  too,  for  the  government  throws  in 
one  heap  with  people  struggling  for  the  right,  many 
unworthy  people  who  have  had  no  share  in  any  honest 
activity.  So  our  enemies  are  spoiling  the  reputation 
of  the  whole  mass  of  'politicals.'  We  have  many 
troubles  on  this  account,  many  afflictions,  and  many 
judgments,  which  have  sometimes  ended  with  the 
exclusion  of  the  guilty  person  from  the  society  of  the 
rest.  One  cannot  be  severe  enough  in  such  a  position 
as  ours.  If  anyone  wishes  to  preserve  his  human 
dignity  and  his  calling  of  a  struggler  for  the  right,  he 
must  be  an  example  to  the  rest  of  the  population  in  all 
his  concerns;  in  his  exterior  as  in  his  interior  life. 
And  here,  where  no  other  means  exist  to  prevent  de- 
generation but  self-control,  and  the  public  opinion  of 
our  comrades,  here  we  must  be  stronger  in  our  prin- 
ciples than  elsewhere. 

"What  a  beautiful  life  Isabel's  has  been!  I  have 
translated  your  account  of  it,  and  it  will  be  printed 
in  a  journal  for  young  people.  I  often  watch  her  in 
different  phases  of  her  present  life.  I  see  her  running 
with  our  June;  her  face  is  radiant,  like  a  saint  who 
sees  heaven.  The  child  is  a  symbol  of  the  best  future 
of  mankind,  especially  a  child  that  has  for  its  fore- 
fathers such  people  as  Isabel  and  her  distinguished 
husband.  Another  time  I  see  her  speaking  at  a  Con- 
gressional reunion,  and  she  is  beautiful,  with  her 
strong  speech  and  her  severe  expression.  And  then 
I  see  her  among  her  friends,  animating  the  whole 


224 

group,  giving  interesting  news  and  comments,  inspir- 
ing those  around  her  with  a  benevolent  feeling  towards 
all  the  world.  Now  that  I  know  she  has  a  companion 
in  her  son,  I  imagine  her  walking  with  him  in  the 
forest,  with  searching  eyes  and  aroused  mind,  trying 
to  penetrate  into  the  secrets  of  nature."  She  is  far 
from  any  trouble,  amidst  the  beautiful  and  silent 
creation,  and  her  soul  is  wandering  in  God's  region. 
...  It  would  be  so  well,  so  well  for  the  youth  of 
every  country  to  have  a  full  description  of  her  life, 
which  has  been  an  uninterrupted  course  of  reasonable 
labor  and  noble  actions  —  a  soul  full  of  love  and  energy. 
Her  God  must  be  satisfied  with  such  a  daughter.  Such 
a  woman  is  to  be  chosen  as  a  model,  for  she  has  not 
only  preached  all  her  life,  but  also  acted.  She  has 
never  been  tired,  or  never  permitted  herself  to  be  so, 
and  all  she  could  give  away  she  has  given.  A  rare 
and  idealistical  example." 

To  Mrs.  Barrows.     March  31-April  13,  1912. 

"It  is  long  since  I  have  seen  such  a  collection  of 
brave,  witty,  and  sympathetic  men  as  in  'The  Moral 
Citadel.'  It  rejoiced  me  the  more  since,  except  for 
a  dozen  excellent  characters,  I  had  not  the  oppor- 
tunity to  make  so  close  an  acquaintance  with  American 
men  as  I  had  with  the  women.  I  saw  that  the  men 
were  so  occupied  with  their  business,  always  so  serious, 
and  I  dared  not  approach  them.  Certainly  such  men 
as  Professor  Ely  and  the  young  students  in  New  York 
I  felt  to  be  good  friends;  and  I  looked  upon  Mr. 
Barrows  with  veneration,  mingled  with  fear  of  being 
a  burden.  Now  that  I  know  his  life  of  devotion 
and  love  for  all  humanity,  his  beautiful  face,  yes,  his 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    225 

whole  tall  slender  figure  are  so  near  to  me,  so  wholly 
near,  that  I  often  address  him,  and  approach  him  like 
a  beloved  relative  who  is  glad,  too,  to  find  out  his  old 
sister. 

"What  wonderfully  good  examples  of  the  human 
species  we  have  on  our  earth !  How  can  one  be  dis- 
tressed or  become  disenchanted  after  having  known 
such  people  as  I  have  known  in  my  country,  in  yours  ? 

"The  Woman's  Journal  is  a  clever  and  warlike 
piece  of  work.  They  repeat  very  often  the  same  argu- 
ments, but  it  is  well  in  this  case,  for  one  must  'battre 
le  fer  quand  il  est  chaud'  Once  a  week  you  must  cry 
aloud,  not  to  be  forgotten  the  other  six  days. 

"The  Survey  is  a  friend  whose  presence  with  us 
can  last  very  long,  for  it  treats  of  subjects  with  which 
we  shall  have  to  do  for  a  long  time,  gradually  amelio- 
rating the  innumerable  defects  of  our  social  life. 
Every  worker  in  social  questions  would  do  well  to  read 
the  Survey,  for  every  one  of  them  would  find  there 
some  investigations  useful  in  his  own  specialty.  If 
not  new,  the  Survey  is  never  old. 

"Easter  was  spent  well.  I  got  a  beautiful  gramo- 
phone, with  excellent  songs  and  musical  parties. 
For  three  days  we  have  had  music  from  9  A.M.  till 
9  P.M.  One  relay  of  young  men  came  for  three  or 
four  hours,  then  another,  and  I  was  afraid  it  would 
continue  the  whole  week,  so  I  sent  the  instrument  for 
a  while  to  my  friends,  a  very  good  family  of  our  people. 

"I  have  some  pupils  in  French,  German  and  Eng- 
lish. But  my  time  is  spent  for  the  most  part  in  preach- 
ing, and  hearing  the  confessions  of  hundreds.  Every 
one  has  his  own  secret  or  sorrows  to  tell  me,  and  to  get 
an  answer. 


226    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLLTION 

"As  for  my  health,  it  is  good  while  I  sit  at  home. 
The  body  may  be  very  well  wrapped  up  and  not  feel 
cold,  but  it  is  enough  for  me  to  breathe  a  cold  air  to 
begin  to  sneeze,  and  to  have  miserable  bronchitis. 
It  is  very  abominable,  but  with  milder  weather  my 
health  will  be  restored. 

"I  have  received  this  printed  card:  'The  Holy 
Spirit  of  the  Spring  is  working  silently.'  The  thing 
is  done  with  much  taste.  I  shall  write  on  it  and 
send  it  to  the  lawyer  who  defended  my  cause  so 
heartily.  But  we  have  no  mail  this  month.  We 
have  friends  so  far  off,  on  the  border  of  the  Ice  Sea, 
that  they  can  receive  mail  only  once  a  year.  We  are 
fortunate." 

Picture  postcard l  to  June  Barrows  Mussey.     April  2- 

15,  1912. 

"My  beloved  grandson!  These  three  creatures  are 
little  pawns.  Now  they  are  plucking  prunes,  and 
eating  them  with  great  pleasure.  But  they  work 
very  hard  every  day,  and  have  no  time  to  do  much 
wrong,  like  the  kings  and  queens,  who  remain  always 
lazy,  for  all  is  done  for  them  by  the  laboring  pawns. 
Many  of  the  little  pawns  have  excellent  capacities; 
they  learn  well,  and  work  for  the  welfare  of  the  whole 
people.  So  will  you,  too.'* 

"June  2-15,  1913. 

"I  would  cross  the  ocean  like  these  ducks,  to  see 
our  Nonna,  to  kiss  her  hands,  and  to  know  how  strong 
she  is  now.  Tell  her  that  Catherine  is  well,  walking 
every  day,  and  looking  after  her  vegetables  that  she 
has  planted  in  a  large  bed." 

1  The  picture  shows  three  peasant  children  picking  fruit. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    227 

To  Miss  Dudley.    April  3-16,  1912. 

"Your  letter  gave  me  great  joy.  Dearest  girl!  I 
see  you  are  taking  a  right  course,  and  you  will  find  a 
profound  relish  (yes,  a  relish)  in  approaching  'the  other 
half '  of  humanity,  so  unknown,  so  disapproved.  If 
you  find  there  many  sides  of  life  which  are  too  heavy 
and  sometimes  too  disagreeable,  yet  you  must  feel 
that  only  in  approaching  this  sea  of  laboring  human 
beings,  investigating  their  mode  of  life  and  their 
psychology,  can  one  act  reasonably  and  rightly.  For 
*  the  other  half '  is  the  basis  on  which  the  whole  organ- 
ization of  our  society  is  built.  If  the  foundation  is 
wrongly  laid,  it  will  crack,  and  all  the  structure  above 
will  be  thrown  down.  And  if  a  citizen  wishes  to  be  of 
use  to  his  country  he  must  begin  with  the  basis.  All 
the  rest  is  only  palliatives,  and,  if  we  have  nothing 
against  philanthropy,  yet  we  cannot  admit  that  such 
work  can  solve  the  social  problem.  For  my  part,  I 
esteem  and  love  tenderly  the  people  who  work  sin- 
cerely as  philanthropists,  but  I  am  always  sorry  to  see 
such  mighty  forces  choose  a  line  of  work  that  does  not 
bring  the  great  benefit  which  results  from  work  amidst 
'the  other  half.'  When  working  there,  a  person  of 
mind  and  heart  will  see  and  understand  at  once  the 
state  of  things,  of  social  relations  and  needs.  With- 
out books,  without  being  taught,  you  see  clearly  where 
the  talent  is  buried.  You  will  see  at  once  that  the 
world  is  now  divided  into  two  parts,  and  that  we  have 
to  make  these  two  parts  like  one  body.  We  see,  too, 
that  one  part  is  willing  to  do  so,  and  that  the  other 
does  not  wish  it.  ...  Oh !  much  to  do !  But,  when 
once  the  people  have  found  out  the  place  that  makes  us 


228    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

suffer,  time  only  will  be  needed  to  restore  the  wrong. 
And  you  see  how  fast  this  teaching  is  now  spreading. 
There  are  quite  plain,  uninstructed  minds  of  peasants 
and  workmen  that  need  to  be  informed  only  once  not 
to  forget  it  during  their  whole  life,  and  to  explain  it 
quite  distinctly  to  every  one  who  will  hear  it.  For  it 
is  life  itself  that  is  teaching,  learning,  and  suggesting; 
there  nothing  is  invented ;  there  is  no  place  for  fancy 
or  poesy,  —  a  naked  truth. 

"I  cannot  tell  you  how  glad  I  am.  For  I  am  sure 
your  nearest  friends  will  follow  you,  and  devote  more 
attention  to  the  labor  question.  It  is  very  good,  if 
only  you  will  not  speed  like  young  horses,  and  lavish 
your  forces  so  that  you  will  be  dead  in  one  year.  Only 
see  how  long  Julia  Ward  Howe  lived,  and  many  other 
old  ladies  of  whom  I  have  read  with  delight  in  the 
American  papers.  How  beautiful  it  is  to  see  and  hear 
an  old  woman  of  eighty  or  ninety  addressing  words  of 
love  and  reason  to  the  young  generation !  I  have 
experienced  myself  that  the  words  of  an  aged  person 
carry  much  more  weight  with  young  people  than  those 
of  their  mates.  They  believe  in  the  teaching  much 
more  when  they  see  that  old  people  preserve  a  young 
faith  in  the  religion  they  have  chosen.  Therefore  I 
urge  all  your  company  to  spare  their  strength  and 
health.  There  are  not  so  many  worthy  people  that 
they  should  be  treated  with  neglect.  I  read  much 
about  what  happened  in  Lawrence,  not  only  in  your 
papers,  but  in  the  Russian  papers  too.  Our  best 
papers  never  fail  to  mention  all  that  concerns  the  cause 
of  'the  other  half  throughout  the  world." 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    229 

To  Mrs.  Barrows.     (Undated.) 

"There  are  some  very  good  women  here  (exiles  too) 
that  take  care  of  me.  Morning,  noon,  and  night, 
they  come  to  make  all  right,  and  to  prepare  my  food. 
One  wished  to  remain  with  me  to  nurse  me,  but  she 
was  arrested  and  turned  out  of  the  cabin.  I  knew  it 
would  be  so,  for  any  one  must  have  a  special  permis- 
sion to  live  in  the  town,  and  this  girl  had  none.  And 
even  if  she  had  had  one,  it  would  have  been  the  same, 
for  every  one  who  approaches  me  closely  is  contami- 
nated. Now  instead  of  four  spies  I  have  six  at  my 
doors  and  windows.  And  yet  I  am  happy  in  spite 
of  all  these  villainies,  for  I  do  not  think  about  them. 
I  think  how  good  people  are  to  me,  receiving  tokens  of 
love  and  friendship.  I  think  this  very  fact  makes  my 
enemies  very  angry,  and  they  permit  my  frequent  and 
large  relations  with  the  world  only  perforce.  Oh, 
they  make  searches  and  hope  to  find  something  preju- 
dicial near  me.  But  I  have  nothing  to  conceal,  and 
my  feelings,  my  philosophy,  are  open  to  every  one. 
Never  mind !  Very  soon  I  shall  be  well,  prancing  and 
dancing.  Then  Alice  and  Helena  will  receive  long 
letters  full  of  jokes  and  foolishness. 

"I  am  annoyed  to  be  careful  about  my  health.  I 
want  to  feel  joyful  and  strong.  It  is  my  habit,  other- 
wise I  am  angry  with  myself.  And  it  seems  to  me  it  is 
another  person,  an  old  foolish  person.  I  do  not  recog- 
nize myself.  I  miss  my  soul,  my  very  self.  Very 
disagreeable !  Such  a  bad  state  makes  me  careful 
about  my  health.  I  am  afraid  of  becoming  an  invalid. 
And  I  eat  an  excellent  soup,  and  fine  white  bread 
and  boiled  milk.  Dry  fruits  give  a  beautiful  compote. 


230    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

In  a  word  [I  am]  like  a  chess  queen  sitting  on  a 
throne. 

"With  all  this  I  pray  God  to  give  me  reason  and 
patience  to  remain  as  careful  forever,  to  remain  strong 
for  the  rest  of  my  life.  Perhaps  God  will  hear  my 
woes,  and  send  me  more  character  and  attention.  I 
detest  being  an  invalid.  For  I  think  my  age  is  not  at 
all  so  great  as  to  throw  me  out  of  life.  And  life  is 
growing  more  and  more  interesting.  I  wish  to  witness 
it.  Do  you  wish  so  too,  dear  sister,  for  there  are  many 
young  people  who  learn  from  us  to  be  honorable  and 
brave,  and  we  want  to  see  them  acting. 

"Do  not  address  yourself  to  those  that  have  no 
heart,  no  reason  in  their  tops.  It  will  never  do.  Your 
interference  makes  them  more  prudent  and  less  rough, 
I  know  —  but  for  your  own  tranquillity." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     June  6-14,  1912. 

"One  thing  causes  me  sorrow.  It  is  the  thought 
that  the  name  of  Lucy  Stone,  so  often  mentioned  in 
her  Journal,  is  known  to  few  persons,  and  that  the 
young  generation  pronounce  that  venerable  name  only 
by  heart,  without  understanding  how  great  and  holy 
it  is.  Who  could  better  relate  her  life,  who  could  tell 
so  clearly  and  sincerely  how  great  and  tender  was  this 
beautiful  soul,  how  attractive  this  face  that  I  remem- 
ber so  well  in  the  portrait  in  your  room?  Now  that 
you  have  a  wide  and  long  experience,  that  you  can 
compare  the  immense  difference  between  the  two  de- 
grees of  difficulty  of  the  work  done  by  your  mother 
and  those  of  to-day,  you  can  show  the  world  a  wonder- 
ful picture  of  energy,  perseverance,  and  self-denial 
exercised  by  a  woman  that  won  her  cause  by  her  own 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    231 

strength,  fighting  her  way  and  rights  like  a  knight  of 
unrivalled  honor  and  courage.  You  have  no  right 
to  leave  the  world  without  giving  it  the  biography  of 
your  noble  and  beautiful  mother.  You  have  no  right 
to  rob  posterity  of  such  a  treasure.  Humanity  is  not 
yet  too  rich  in  beautiful  examples  not  to  show  them 
to  us  as  largely  as  possible.  We  need  to  have  before 
us  such  images  as  can  inspire  us,  teach  us. 

"June  11-24. 

"It  has  been  good  weather  these  days.  I  have  been 
often  out  of  doors,  and  felt  as  if  I  were  intoxicated. 

"Once  you  asked  me  what  I  thought  of  theatrical 
representations  which  are  given  only  to  satisfy  our 
lowest  tastes,  our  frivolities.  I  am  against  them, 
and  never  would  recommend  them  to  children  and 
young  people,  understanding  that  grown  people  will 
go  to  such  spectacles  only  to  get  some  idea  of  them. 
Young  people  should  be  maintained  only  by  high  and 
beautiful  pictures  of  our  life.  Children  have,  without 
our  intervening,  too  many  wicked  and  dishonorable  ex- 
amples before  them.  I  am  sure  the  only  reason  there 
is  so  much  bad  literature,  so  many  bad  performances 
of  all  kinds,  bad  music,  and  bad  morals  is  because  the 
people  are  not  well  enough  acquainted  with  that  which 
is  healthy,  high,  and  beautiful.  Most  people,  even 
now,  would  prefer  what  is  good,  what  is  thoroughly 
good.  Oh,  yes,  humanity  has  already  developed  the 
senses  which  can  catch  the  more  delicate  traits  of 
progress. 

"I  send  Mr.  Herreshoff  a  big  face  of  mine.  It  is 
very  like  me,  and  reminds  one  of  -the  ancient  statues 
made  of  stone  and  worn  out  with  time. 


232    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"  The  skirmish  and  all  the  wrongs  that  are  committed 
during  the  election  time  wring  my  heart.  I  cannot 
read  the  description  of  it  without  suffering  for  a  free 
country.  Oh,  if  we  had  what  you  have  already  !  But 
it  is  our  own  fault. 

"We  have  had  some  warm  days.  I  am  sure  there 
will  be  more,  and  there  will  be  time  enough  to  get 
strong  and  beautiful  ( !)  before  winter  comes.  Just 
now  my  cheeks  are  red  and  brown,  my  feet  alert  and 
gracious,  my  mind  full  of  hope.  A  magnificence  of 
different  sorts  of  flowers  are  brought  to  me  as  splendid 
bouquets  by  our  boys,  who  are  climbing  the  mountains 
and  searching  the  forests  and  valleys.  A  very  rich 
flora,  but  for  a  very  short  time  flourishing  and  orna- 
menting the  rude  and  monotonous  nature  of  the 
country.  I  cannot  leave  the  town,  and  cannot  breathe 
the  air  of  the  fragrant  vegetation  of  the  forests.  But 
we  have  so  many  flies  in  our  town,  and  other  atrocious 
insects  in  all  the  houses,  that  it  must  be  taken  as  a 
compensation  for  the  want  of  living  beings,  inhabitants 
of  the  immense  spaces  surrounding  us. 

"Oh,  if  you  were  as  well  and  strong  as  I  am,  not- 
withstanding all  the  defects  and  deprivations  of  my 
liberty ! 

"Miss  Addams  is  always  in  action,  and  many  other 
women,  the  pride  of  your  country.  Certainly,  when 
once  we  get  our  rights,  we  shall  prove  our  fitness.  It 
was  proved  long  ago.  But,  for  my  part,  I  think  never 
was  given  such  an  excellent  answer  on  the  suffrage 
question  as  was  given  by  Clara  Barton,  that  majestic 
and  wonderful  woman." 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    233 

To  Arthur  Bullard.     July  4-17,  1912. 

"Le  monde  se  reveille" 

"Yes,  politics  in  America,  as  everywhere,  is  more 
hopeful  now.  I  am  very  eager  to  be  aware  how  great 
is  the  progress  in  your  country,  being  sure  that  its 
example  will  have  a  world  wide  significance.  The 
thousands  of  immigrants  that  invade  your  country 
will  promulgate  the  reforms  made  there  in  their  own 
native  lands,  for  many  of  them  are  only  temporary 
toilers  in  the  United  States.  Therefore  all  the  news 
concerning  the  state  of  political  questions  in  the 
United  States  (the  election  of  the  president  included) 
is  a  matter  of  great  interest  to  me. 

"The  book  about  Panama  is  a  rich  piece  of  literature 
for  people  who  have  a  poor  idea  of  what  the  physical 
and  social  life  of  the  place  is. 

"As  for  the  'ineffectual  reformer',  as  you  call  him,  it 
is  exceptionally  interesting.  I  am  waiting  for  it.  Per- 
haps I  guess  the  character  that  may  be  the  model  of 
the  man  you  describe.  I  remember  a  figure  among 
the  people  of  your  set,  very  long,  somewhat  dull  and 
melancholic,  walking  like  a  person  of  a  world  apart. 
Such  figures  are  familiar  to  me,  and  I  have  learned  to 
perceive  through  the  outward  loneliness  and  melan- 
choly of  their  faces,  an  emptiness  of  mind  and  feelings. 
Pardon  me  if  I  am  wrong  in  regard  to  your  hero ;  but 
I  never  saw  courage  and  abnegation  combined  with  a 
lack  of  enthusiasm  and  faith.  I  think  that  a  true 
exposition  of  the  before  mentioned  character  in  his 
efforts  to  be  useful  to  mankind  will  be  of  great  profit 
to  your  readers ;  showing  how  little  or  nothing  a  man 
can  do  who  is  not  sure  enough  of  what  he  is  doing. 


234    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

I  hope  our  fatherland  will  move  too;  it  cannot  rest 
behind.  Being  pushed  from  East  and  West,  it  must 
go  forward." 

To  a  Friend.    July,  1912. 

"  You  are  not  married  yet,  and  you  gaze  like  a  phi- 
losopher on  the  happiness  of  your  friends,  without 
bitterness,  enjoying  their  family  life  as  if  it  were  your 
own.  Well !  you  are  young ;  you  will  choose  a  nice, 
working  suffragist,  who  will  embellish  your  life  with- 
out giving  you  much  trouble  about  getting  a  great 
deal  of  money. 

"To-day  I  saw  two  of  my  boys  going  to  visit  their 
brides.  They  have  to  go  more  than  a  thousand  miles, 
hah*  of  which  they  will  travel  on  foot,  and  eating  only 
bread  and  tea.  The  boys  and  the  two  girls  have 
recently  finished  their  terms  in  the  hard  labor  prisons, 
and  yet  they  are  young,  fresh,  and  full  of  hope.  They 
are  enthusiastic  enough,  and  will  reach  their  ends." 

To  Mrs.  Barrows.     August  6-19, 1912. 

"Life  and  Labor  suits  me  as  well  as  the  best 
Russian  magazines,  for  it  is  simple  and  noble. 

"I  have  a  terrible  photograph  of  myself,  very  like 
indeed.  I  will  send  it  to  your  son,  but  he  mustn't  be 
afraid." 

Picture  postcards  to  June  Barrows  Mussey.     August 

17,  1912. 

"You  see  in  this  picture  a  horde  of  ancient  Cossacks, 
when  they  formed  a  nation  of  their  own,  and  were 
really  brave  and  independent.  Free  as  they  were, 
they  elected  every  year  a  new  chief,  a  colonel,  who 


UTTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    235 

ruled  all  their  affairs.  When  the  ceremony  of  election 
took  place,  the  ex-chief  would  transmit  to  the  newly 
chosen  'Ataman'  all  the  relics,  or  jewels,  which  were 
regarded  as  the  treasure  belonging  to  the  whole  army, 
and  a  sign  of  honor  for  the  person  that  kept  them. 
So,  my  dear  grandson,  I  will  transmit  to  you  the  keep- 
ing of  my  best  sentiments  and  thoughts." 

October  26-November  9,  1912. 

"You  see  that  this  boy  takes  his  toy  for  a  living 
bear.  He  is  a  little  afraid  of  him,  yet  courageous 
enough  to  encounter  him  in  a  fight.  So  often  in  our 
life  we  are  mistaken,  taking  quite  childish  things, 
trifles,  for  serious  or  dangerous  circumstances,  and  we 
waste  our  time  and  forces  about  nonsense.  Do  not 
cry  unless  you  are  badly  hurt,  and  never  be  a  coward." 


CHAPTER  XV 

George  Lazareff  to  Mrs.  Barrows.     November  8,  1912. 

"After  the  peaceful  strike  at  the  Lena  gold  mines, 
more  than  eight  hundred  men,  women  and  children 
were  shot,  killed  and  wounded,  and  all  the  political 
exiles,  many  of  whom  were  working  there,  were  expelled 
from  the  place.  This  trouble  happened  in  the  district 
of  Kirensk. 

"The  police  made  two  searches  at  Madame  Bresh- 
kovsky's.  They  took  away  all  her  papers,  postcards, 
and  photographs,  but  later  returned  them.  She  is 
practically  imprisoned  in  Kirensk.  Meanwhile  she 
is  doing  incessantly  a  great  work  in  her  immense  dis- 
trict in  organizing  help  for  the  starving  exiles,  and 
through  them  medical  and  other  assistance  for  the  local 
population.  The  whole  population  love  her,  and  this 
again  excites  fresh  suspicion  on  the  part  of  the  police.  I 
send  her  regularly  forty  rubles  a  month"  (a  little  more 
than  twenty  dollars). 

With  three  picture  postcards  sent  to  Miss  Dudley. 

"1.  This  is  a  typical  Russian  student.  She  comes 
from  a  far-off  province,  lives  on  eight  or  ten  dollars  per 
month,  and  is  studying  day  and  night,  till  she  grows  as 
lean  as  a  dying  woman.  She  wears  these  clothes 

230 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    237 

autumn  and  winter,  till  she  catches  some  illness,  very 
often  fatal.  She  wishes  to  be  useful  to  her  people, 
and  to  know  everything  in  the  world.  Too  eager  for 
knowledge,  and  therefore  not  seldom  missing  its  main 
object.  The  painter  of  this  picture  is  a  connoisseur  of 
Russian  types,  especially  among  our  youth. 

"I  have  here  this  year  many  young  women.  Some 
came  with  their  husbands,  others  came  here  as  political 
convicts,  and  very  often  I  wonder  to  see  how  excellent 
they  are.  So  modest,  so  zealous,  clever  and  good. 
Working  very  hard,  for  all  of  them  have  to  earn  their 
bread,  except  myself,  provided  as  I  am  with  every  com- 
fort imaginable." 

"2.  This  girl  is  musing  on  what  will  be  the  destina- 
tion of  her  knowledge.  Her  heart  is  not  glowing,  but 
her  reason  is  strong,  and  she  fears  to  spend  her  forces 
cheaply.  She  is  not  a  Puritan  like  the  first,  yet  she 
appreciates  herself  highly  enough  to  wish  to  be  a  first- 
rate  woman.  We  have  had  many  of  this  kind,  and 
nearly  all  have  been  sentenced  to  many  years  of  hard 
labor.  Proud  and  strong  characters.  All  the  pictures 
I  send  to  America  are  bought  here  in  this  little  town. 
One  merchant  makes  a  large  profit  by  selling  these  cards, 
for  all  our  boys  are  very  fond  of  good  pictures,  and  they 
give  up  their  last  kopek  merely  to  have  some  sym- 
pathetic face,  or  landscape,  or  symbol." 

"  3.  Never  tired  and  always  ready  to  sing  and  to  dance 
are  the  young  girls  of  the  Russian  peasantry.  Working 
in  the  fields  sixteen  hours  a  day,  they  return  home, 
as  well  as  the  married  women,  with  songs  which  are 
heard  miles  away.  And  while  the  mothers  prepare 
the  supper  and  take  care  of  the  little  ones,  the  girls  are 
out  of  doors,  out  of  the  village,  running  'horovod.'  A 


238    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

large  ring  of  girls,  and  often  young  boys,  hand  in  hand, 
keep  slowly  moving  and  singing  one  song  after  another 
till  the  summer  sun  rises  again,  and  all  this  squad 
disperses  to  begin  work  anew.  Sometimes  there  is  a 
violin,  and  more  lively  dances  animate  the  numerous 
groups,  where  youthful  peasants,  poor  and  rich,  feel 
themselves  equal  and  free.  There  are  beautiful 
examples  of  womanly  beauty.  And  I  imagine  what  a 
magnificent  society  we  shall  have  when  all  these  young 
wild  beings  get  a  serious  and  wholesome  education." 

To  Miss  Dudley.     October  6-19,  1912.  H 

"What  an  extra  fine  present,  what  a  beautiful  album 
of  Wellesley  College !  And  Ellen  Fitz  Pendleton,  what 
a  majestic  figure !  The  life  of  Wellesley  College 
students  pictured  there  is  like  the  paradise  of  Mo- 
hammed :  joy,  beauty,  and  festivity.  Sorry  there  are 
not  photos  of  their  cabinets  full  of  books,  and  desks, 
tables  at  which  the  nice  blond  heads  I  saw  during  my 
short  visit  at  the  college  are  working. 

"How  fond  I  am  of  the  articles  George  Kennan  is 
giving  to  the  Outlook!  All  he  says  about  Japan  I 
agree  with  to  the  last  word.  For  I  have  had  the  same 
experiences  with  other  peoples,  whose  psychology  is 
strange  to  the  whole  body  of  our  nation.  How  well 
it  is  that  science  is  making  a  successful  advance  toward 
giving  different  countries  a  knowledge  of  each  other! 
It  is  so  dull  to  have  only  strangers  around  us  in  every 
place  on  earth,  when  we  are  brothers,  all  coming  from 
one  source  The  soul  is  the  same,  the  habits  are 
different. 

"Alice  sent  me"  Mrs.  Pethick  Lawrence  and  Miss 
Christabel  Pankhurst;  very  agreeable  pictures,  but  I 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    239 

should  pity  them  now,  after  all  the  sufferings  they 
have  experienced  these  last  years.  They  do  not  laugh, 
and  their  cheeks  are  meagre  and  pale.  I  would  not 
follow  them,  yet  I  cannot  blame  them,  for  they  are 
sincere  and  distressed.  I  mean  that,  with  the  energy 
of  Englishwomen,  and  the  large  possiblHty  of  carrying 
on  their  propaganda,  the  women  could  work  their 
way  out  without  militancy  run  to  the  extreme. 

"As  to  the  war  in  the  Balkans,  I  wish  it  would  end 
the  sordid  question,  the  so-called  'Eastern  question." 

On  a  picture  postcard  : 

"This  is  just  the  cell  in  the  fortress  of  St.  Peter  and 
St.  Paul.  Everything  is  stone,  asphalt,  and  iron;  it 
is  very  dark  in  the  cells  on  the  first  floor,  for  the  wall 
which  surrounds  the  buildings  is  high  enough  to  keep 
out  the  light  of  the  sun,  and  you  never  see  the  sky  and 
stars.  An  old  creature,  like  me,  can  support  all  the 
privations  of  air,  light,  motion,  etc.  But  the  young 
suffer  seriously,  and  the  silence  and  the  mysterious 
running  of  all  the  ways  of  life  there  exert  a  distressing 
influence  on  the  spirit  and  imagination.  It  is  like  a 
tomb.  No  human  sounds,  but  very  many  sounds 
coming  from  outside,  and  from  underground,  the  origin 
of  which  you  cannot  explain.  Nobody  answers  your 
questions  except  the  chief,  very  seldom  seen,  and  you  can 
torture  yourself  with  visions  and  horrible  pictures  till 
you  go  mad.  Many,  many  young  lives  have  perished 
in  this  awful  place,  the  best  souls  and  best  characters." 

To  Lewis  Herreshoff.     October  10-23,  1912. 

"All  those  around  me  are  too  young  to  be  a  match  for 
me,  or,  if  I  speak  to  the  aborigines,  too  foreign  to  me. 


240    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"I  am  not  able  to  write  more  than  I  do,  having  on  my 
hands  a  lot  of  cares  concerning  the  health  (mental  and 
physical)  of  more  than  fifteen  hundred  youths.  I  cannot 
do  the  tenth  part  of  what  I  want  to  do  for  my  unfortu- 
nate family,  but  my  thoughts  are  with  them,  and  my 
heart  is  always  busy  with  all  sorts  of  sentiments.  Hope, 
love,  care,  pity,  are  mixed  with  sadness,  impatience, 
anger. 

"When  alone  or  in  my  bed,  I  imagine  to  myself  some 
unexpected  chance  that  brings  me  large  means  of 
guaranteeing  the  welfare  of  my  young  family  for  some 
time.  And  I  distribute  and  I  keep  the  goods  for  the 
future,  and  so  I  fall  asleep.  Otherwise  it  would  be 
impossible  for  me  to  keep  up  my  humor  and  presence 
of  mind,  for  every  day's  need  and  every  day's  misfor- 
tune would  crush  my  heart. 

"My  imagination  has  been  very  vivid  from  my 
childhood.  I  cannot  read  stories  or  accounts  that  tell 
about  perversity,  crimes,  or  cruelty.  I  am  sure  none 
of  us  could  support  the  sight  of  tortures,  for  instance, 
yet  nearly  every  one  can  read  the  description.  I 
cannot,  without  being  hurt  mentally ;  I  become  furious, 
for  I  represent  to  myself  all  the  horror  of  the  fact. 
Often  I  think  it  is  only  thanks  to  my  imagination, 
always  inclined  to  picture  high  or  beautiful  events, 
that  I  have  preserved  the  strength  I  possess  until  now. 
Even  all  sorts  of  deprivations,  moral  or  physical, 
are  disgusting  to  such  a  point  that  I  cannot  read  of 
them. 

"One  of  our  best  writers,  Dostoievsky,  translated 
into  English,  French,  Italian,  etc.,  is  dreadful  to  me. 
I  never  read  him.  He  is  a  psychologist  and  a  scientist 
in  all  mental  diseases.  My  body  and  my  soul  were 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    241 

always  healthy ;  I  see  a  great  mischief  in  every  species 
of  psychopathy. 

"The  letter  of  your  niece  on  the  election  of  Roosevelt 
and  Taft  reached  me.  In  the  American  press,  as  well 
as  in  the  Russian  press,  I  follow  the  race  of  the  election, 
and  I  fear  that  no  one  of  the  candidates  is  fit  to  arrange 
matters  better  than  they  are  now.  Yet  all  goes  with 
you  much  better  than  with  us,  to  the  shame  of  our 
people." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     October  20-November  2,  1912. 

"It  has  been  a  quite  peculiar  pleasure  to  me  to  read 
'A  Man's  World,'  by  Albert  Edwards.  Why  so?  It 
is  well  written,  and  includes  a  lot  of  interesting  questions 
and  facts;  but  that  is  not  all.  The  book  captivates 
me  for  its  very  near  approach  to  the  style  of  our  best 
autobiographers.  It  is  even  difficult  for  me  to  conceive, 
when  reading  it,  that  it  is  by  a  foreigner :  just  like  our 
own  method  of  setting  forth  the  things  which  are  dear 
to  us,  and  those  which  concern  our  ideas  and  feelings. 
No  effects,  no  self-admiration,  no  desire  to  move  the 
reader  by  any  sentimental  pictures  or  descriptions  — 
plain  and  true.  And  yet  you  feel  all  the  time  how  in- 
telligent and  profoundly  meaning  the  author  is,  how 
awakened  is  his  spirit.  The  constant  sadness  and 
melancholy  of  his  heart  is  not  underlined  by  himself, 
but  the  reader  himself  sees  this  rather  stern  figure,  that 
keeps  in  his  mind  a  world  of  thoughts  and  observations. 
Having  missed  the  happiness  of  the  outer  world,  he 
has  acquired,  by  a  long  way  of  study  and  philosophical 
watchfulness,  an  inward  world  of  knowledge  of  the 
secrets  of  life.  And,  as  our  acquaintance  with  human 
psychology  makes  us  masters  of  life  with  all  its  vicissi- 


242    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

tudes,  we  feel  that  the  author  of  this  book  stands 
strongly  on  his  mental  feet,  and  is  capable  of  discerning 
distinctly  the  wrong  from  the  truth. 

"You  must  notice  how  bad  my  writing  is  growing. 
It  is  because  I  am  always  tired.  My  head  is  full  of 
the  needs  of  those  around  me;  and  when  you  add  all 
the  mischiefs  coming  from  our  enemies,  it  becomes  a 
heavy  load.  Sometimes  I  feel  ashamed  before  the 
young  people,  having  no  words,  no  voice  to  express 
myself. 

"I  have  sent  three  cards  to  Helena  Dudley,  our 
growing  friend,  whose  majestic  figure  I  imagine  on  the 
platform  at  Lawrence.  How  glad  I  am,  how  beautiful 
it  is,  without  any  flattery ! 

"How  different  is  'A  Man's  World'  from  'Fifty 
Years  of  Prison  Service,'  an  autobiography  by  Zebulon 
R.  Brockway!  This  man  assures  us  that  every  func- 
tionary was  the  most  venerable  officer,  yet  he  finishes 
his  account  of  nearly  every  one  by  adding  that  the 
officer  was  killed  by  some  convict  for  his  cruelty.  It  is 
a  narration  of  a  very  uniform  performance  of  service 
of  a  pedant,  and  no  signs  of  the  psychological  growth 
of  a  human  soul." 

Mrs.  Barrows  wrote  to  her,  protesting  against  this 
judgment  on  Mr.  Brockway.  I  insert  her  reply 
here,  although  out  of  chronological  order. 

February  5-18,  1913. 

"You  were  right  in  saying  that  I  had  read  only  the 
first  part  of  the  book,  'Fifty  Years  of  Prison  Service,' 
when  I  wrote  my  letter.  Now  that  I  have  read  it 
to  its  last  page,  I  am  entirely  of  your  opinion,  that  the 
author,  venerable  Mr.  Brockway,  was  an  imposing 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    243 

figure  in  the  tenacity  and  the  devotion  of  his  character, 
which  never  failed  him.  And  it  is  above  all  the  last 
chapter,  'The  Ideal  of  a  Prison  System,'  which  proves 
the  sagacity  and  sincerity  of  this  remarkable  man. 

"I  must  tell  you  that  it  is  just  the  difference  in 
character  between  our  two  peoples,  the  Americans  and 
the  Russians,  which  keeps  us  from  mutually  under- 
standing each  other  at  first.  For  instance,  ignorant 
and  grotesque  as  are  our  people,  and  consequently  our 
criminals,  they  are  particularly  susceptible  to  the  small- 
est kindness,  to  the  least  indulgence,  even  on  the  part 
of  their  persecutors.  The  expression,^  He  is  our  father,' 
is  always  used  in  good  faith  in  regard  to  the  officials 
who  pay  the  least  attention  to  the  needs  of  their  sub- 
ordinates, and  never  in  my  life  have  I  heard  of  prisoners 
permitting  themselves  to  ill-treat  warders  who  were  at 
all  good  to  them,  or  who  were  even  just  to  them.  Our 
people  acknowledge  the  law,  and  are  always  ready  to 
obey  it,  and  it  is  only  a  clear  injustice,  an  intolerable 
persecution  that  makes  them  impatient  and  rebellious. 
Everything  that  is  just,  everything  that  is  benevolent 
toward  them,  they  appreciate  and  respect.  But,  as 
the  whole  world  knows,  these  poor  people  are  ill  treated 
to  the  limit,  in  their  everyday  life ;  they  are  still  more 
so  in  the  Russian  prisons,  where  every  monster  of  a 
jailor  has  a  right  to  tyrannize  over  the  prisoners  as 
much  as  he  chooses.  The  most  hideous  of  these 
scoundrels  sometimes  get  the  fate  that  they  deserve; 
they  fall  by  the  hand  of  a  rebel,  who,  in  most  cases,  is 
avenging  the  outrages  endured  by  all  his  comrades,  and 
not  his  own  personal  wrong.  As  for  cases  of  officials 
who  were  straightforward  and  courteous  being  mur- 
dered, I  have  never  heard  of  such  a  case  anywhere. 


244    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"  Mr.  Brockway's  experience  tells  us  just  the  opposite, 
and  he  gives  many  instances  where  the  best  behaved 
officials  were  killed  quite  young  by  the  convicts,  who 
had  not  even  been  ill-treated  by  them.  It  is  quite 
possible  that  the  independent  character  of  the  Ameri- 
cans cannot  endure  either  restraint  or  control,  and  that, 
not  being  able  to  put  up  with  either,  they  permit 
themselves  to  take  a  personal  revenge ;  while  the  Rus- 
sian criminals  stand  forward,  in  general,  as  avengers 
of  the  evils  felt  by  their  whole  community,  evils  borne 
for  a  long  time  before  being  punished. 

"  In  addition  to  this  difference  between  our  characters 
and  way  of  behaving,  we  have  yet  another,  not  less 
clear  and  significant.  Whereas  Americans  (like  all 
Anglo-Saxons)  are  punctual  in  their  business,  and  in 
all  their  conduct  relating  to  their  duties  and  their  mutual 
relationships,  we  Slavs,  and  above  all  we  Russians, 
suffer  greatly  from  the  fault  of  nonchalance.  On  the  one 
hand,  this  fault  makes  us  fall  short  (manquer)  in  many 
good  things;  makes  us  waste  our  time,  our  energy, 
even  our  knowledge,  without  deriving  the  necessary 
profit  from  them.  On  the  other  hand,  in  view  of  the 
severe  laws,  the  rude  manners,  the  despotism  in  all  the 
corners  of  daily  life,  a  rigid  punctuality  would  make  life, 
especially  in  the  prisons,  utterly  unendurable.  And  it 
is  in  these  cases  that  the  Russian  nonchalance  permits 
the  prisoners  to  breathe  a  little  bit  even  in  these  frightful 
dungeons.  In  consequence,  the  Russian  people  abhor 
officials  who  are  martinets,  knowing  that  the  rigidity 
of  the  regime  carried  out  in  all  its  severity  would  make 
life  impossible.  I  venture  to  believe  that  the  frequent 
murders  mentioned  by  Mr.  Brockway  are  in  part  the 
result  of  these  incessant  'chicanes'  which  must  be 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    245 

experienced  by  the  individual  subjected  to  a  regime  that 
deprives  him  of  all  liberty,  even  in  relation  to  his 
smallest  wishes  and  needs.  It  is  possible  also  that  the 
Russian  people,  knowing  that  they  have  by  their 
side  a  constant  and  implacable  enemy,  an  enemy  that 
is  complex  and  as  it  were  insaisissable,  may  turn  their 
eyes  rather  toward  this  complexity,  wishing  to  get 
rid  of  it  once  for  all.  Hence  individual  cases  of 
atrocities,  horrible  though  they  may  be,  are  borne  with 
patience,  or  rather  with  stoicism.  We  are  accustomed 
to  daily  cruelties,  and  face  them  as  inevitable  facts. 

"For  instance,  one  day  lately,  an  exile  who  was  ill 
was  obliged  to  leave  the  hospital  before  his  strength 
was  reestablished.  The  doctor  told  him  to  stay  in  the 
city,  so  as  to  be  able  to  make  visits  to  the  dispensary 
for  some  time  longer.  But  the  police  had  him  arrested 
and  taken  to  the  place  where  he  was  to  be  exiled,  200 
versts  from  here.  The  cold  was  intense,  the  invalid's 
clothes  were  too  thin,  and  after  two  days  of  a  miserable 
journey,  the  poor  man  was  brought  back  again  with 
his  hands  and  head  severely  frozen.  The  doctor  had 
to  amputate  his  fingers,  and  both  ears,  leaving  him 
maimed  for  life. 

"To-day  we  have  had  the  grief  of  burying  another 
comrade,  a  very  intelligent  Jew,  who,  not  being  able  to 
get  a  passport  —  Jews  here  are  not  allowed  to  have 
passports  —  not  being  able  to  go  anywhere  to  find  work, 
died  almost  of  starvation.  .  .  .  You  will  understand 
that,  having  before  me  in  the  past  and  in  the  present 
an  endless  series  of  such  pictures,  it  is  not  prison  reform 
that  I  am  thinking  about,  it  is  not  to  that  object  that 
I  should  like  to  direct  the  strength  and  attention  of 
the  public,  although  I  venerate  the  beings  who  occupy 


246    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

themselves  with  it,  but  that  I  should  like  to  see  the 
whole  modus  vivendi  changed  so  much  that  the  popula- 
tion of  the  globe  would  not  be  subjected  to  sufferings 
from  which  they  could  be  relieved  with  advantage 
to  the  whole  world. 

"I  want  to  say  a  few  words  more  about  our  friend 
Bullard's  book,  whose  work  arouses  my  lively  curiosity 
(m'intrigue  vivement),  and  this  is  why.  Here  again, 
perhaps,  we  have  to  do  with  the  difference  of  racial 
characteristics.  We  prefer  characters  who  are  always 
in  quest  of  the  right  and  the  true,  under  whatever  form ; 
whether  God,  or  religion,  or  forms  of  social  life,  or 
scientific  truths.  A  dogmatic  form  of  thought  is  alien 
to  us.  While  advancing  for  the  present  such  or  such  a 
form  as  better  than  any  other,  our  spirit,  or  rather  our 
imagination,  leaves  us  freedom  to  create  for  ourselves 
superior  forms  of  life  to  that  which  in  the  present  is 
placed  as  the  aim  of  our  aspirations.  And  here  in 
Arthur  Bullard's  book  I  find  a  soul,  a  mind  which  is 
searching,  which  is  feeling  its  way,  which  ends  by  under- 
standing the  imperfection  of  the  very  foundation  where 
present  society  organizes  its  disfigured  dwelling,  where 
it  introduces  so  many  absurd  customs,  and,  what  is 
worse,  so  many  deceptive  principles.  The  character 
depicted  in  '  A  Man's  World '  is  likable  on  the  one  hand 
because  of  his  disgust  for  evil,  on  the  other  because  of 
his  efforts  to  attain  all  the  good  permitted  him  by  his 
nature,  which  is  a  little  lymphatic,  a  little  timid  of  the 
shocks  which  a  bold  and  decided  life  risks  encountering 
at  every  more  or  less  decisive  step.  He  is  a  con- 
scientious and  devoted  pioneer,  but  a  timorous  spirit, 
not  enlightened  enough  to  go  and  fight  the  super- 
stitions and  evils  of  his  century  with  an  arm  stretched 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    247 

out  openly.  It  is  people  like  that  who  take  the  first 
steps  toward  criticism,  toward  the  renewal  of  the  style 
of  human  life.  I  confess  that  in  spite  of  the  author's 
noble  tendency,  there  were  in  his  work  pages  that  I  had 
to  skip,  —  not  because  they  contained  indecencies, 
there  were  none,  but  because  I  cannot  bear  scenes  de- 
picting the  degradation  of  a  human  being,  or  moments  of 
moral  suffering,  where  the  human  heart  is  full  of  deadly 
fear.  For,  being  sure  of  my  own  courage,  of  my  strength, 
which  enables  me  to  endure  long  and  unavoidable 
sufferings,  it  always  seems  to  me  that  other  people's 
afflictions  are  much  heavier  and  more  intolerable. 
That  is  a  personal  trait  which  I  never  could  get  rid  of. 
"Russians  prefer  works  containing  an  idea,  trying  to 
develop  it  as  far  as  possible,  to  make  the  reader  under- 
stand and  accept  it.  That  is  why  I  find  a  resemblance 
between  'A  Man's  World'  and  the  writings  of  our 
favorite  authors.  Besides  that,  works  of  our  avowed 
romanticists  never  contain  scenes  of  seduction,  scenes 
that  are  exotic  or  extraordinary,  and  for  two  reasons : 
1.  Our  life,  even  the  life  of  our  great  cities,  is  much  less 
complex  than  that  of  American  cities.  2.  Our  civilized 
public,  and  even  our  peasants,  prefer  works  which  lead 
us  into  regions  of  thought,  of  philosophy,  of  meditation, 
where  one  wishes  to  dwell  without  being  interrupted  by 
effects  of  a  brutal  or  unbecoming  kind.  Our  friend 
Arthur  Bullard  offers  us  his  second  book,  'Comrade 
Yetta,'  which  makes  the  continuation  of  a  program 
of  ideas  and  actions." 

To  Mrs.  Barrows.     November  30-December  13,  1912. 

"My  heart  is  full  of  you,  for  I  am  in  distress  thinking 
of  your  health.     Why  did  you  return  from  the  sani- 


248    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

tarium,  where  some  months  more  would  disfranchise 
you  of  your  disease  forever  ?  What,  am  I  more  reason- 
able than  you  ?  I  have  never  believed  it.  Think  only 
of  your  husband,  who  watches  over  you  day  and  night. 
His  soul  rejoices  to  see  how  much  light  is  thrown  on 
every  one  who  has  the  happiness  of  knowing  you." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     November  30-December  15, 1912. 

"It  is  not  true  that  the  Socialists  are  opposed  to 
culture  and  cultural  work.  It  is  absurd  to  affirm  it. 
Yet  I  know  that  many  people  who  understand  the  word 
'culture*  in  a  very  narrow  sense,  as  splendid  and 
showy  examples  of  different  arts,  believe  it  is  premature 
to  think  about  this  before  the  things  of  vital  necessity 
are  obtained.  Others  say  that,  as  despotism  is  forcibly 
holding  back  every  effort  to  cultivate  the  country,  one 
must  apply  one's  strength  to  clear  the  way  before 
entering  upon  it.  But  in  your  country,  for  instance, 
where  no  efforts  are  hindered  or  annulled,  there  is 
plenty  of  cultural  work,  and  it  is  urgently  necessary, 
for  how  can  we  expect  to  get  the  people  ready  to  accept 
new  forms  of  sociability,  forms  which  demand  a  quite 
new  and  very  accomplished  conception  of  life  and 
mutual  relations,  without  preparing  them  for  it?  It 
is  a  great  mistake  to  think  that  the  human  mind  is 
ready  to  accept  and  to  digest  every  new  conception 
or  idea,  without  having  learned  long  in  advance  to 
understand  it  and  to  embody  it. 

"  Culture,  in  its  large  sense,  is  a  matter  that  involves 
in  itself  all  the  progress,  with  its  functions,  known  from 
the  beginning  to  the  latest  minutes  of  our  existence. 
How  can  we  allow  ourselves  to  be  deprived  of  this  knowl- 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    249 

edge,  which  is  the  common  treasure  of  mankind  ?  How 
poor  and  naked  our  existence  would  be  without  those 
professions  which  give  us  the  means  of  introducing  into 
the  minds  and  feelings,  as  well  as  the  senses,  of  our 
brothers  and  sisters  the  best  ideas,  the  best  tastes,  the 
best  habits,  best  knowledge,  and  best  sentiments ! 
Are  we  not  endeavoring  to  guarantee  them  all  the  means 
not  only  of  conserving  what  has  been  acquired  already, 
but  of  going  forward  with  the  improvement?  This 
does  not  mean  that  we  must  forget  the  material  side 
of  the  matter.  It  only  means  that,  while  establishing 
the  material  side  on  a  durable  foundation,  we  must 
by  no  means  forget  to  arm  the  people  with  all  the  prog- 
ress that  history  has  made.  Culture,  so  understood, 
is  an  inherent  part  of  our  activity  and  OUT  endeavors." 

To  Miss  Agnes  E.  Ryan. 

"You  are  my  weekly  companion,  too..  I  follow 
eagerly  the  progress  of  the  Woman's  Journal;  it  is  the 
first  thing  I  read  after  the  mail  is  delivered.  A  great 
thing  is  the  work  of  the  suffragists ;  it  is  a  big  force 
to  make  the  world  better,  and  I  am  sure  the  women  of 
all  countries  will  improve  the  status  of  our  planet's 
husbandry.  Only  we  must  not  forget  to  do  our  best 
for  the  people  who  are  now  deprived  of  the  possibility 
of  enlarging  the  conditions  of  their  welfare.  I  con- 
gratulate you  on  the  fitness  of  your  paper  to  maintain 
sympathy  with  all  the  most  attractive  sides  of  the 
general  progress  spread  over  all  countries.  China  at- 
tracts my  sympathy  especially,  and  I  am  angry  because 
the  big  governments  are  jealous  of  its  success." 


250    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

To  Miss  Dudley.     December  1-14,  1912. 

"Helena!  I  am  knocked  down  by  the  goodness  of 
Wellesley  College !  I  feel  myself  guilty,  ungrateful. 
What  can  I  do  to  show  myself  appreciative  enough  of 
such  attention?  I,  who  am  ashamed  even  to  write 
to  persons  who  have  no  reason  to  be  so  indulgent  as 
you  are  toward  me.  Nevertheless,  I  am  very  glad  to 
get  anything  nice  and  new.  For  a  long  time,  before  it 
is  sent  or  given  away,  I  enjoy  it  myself,  and  so  do  all 
those  who  come  to  see  me,  and  they  are  many.  I  am 
always  proud  to  be  able  to  show  how  good  my  friends 
are  and  how  constant  in  their  tenderness.  Years  and 
years  coming  and  going  away,  times  changing,  and  new 
cares  and  works  overwhelming  the  busy  heads  and 
hearts  —  and  yet  the  ties  of  friendship  are  strong,  and 
do  not  yield  to  the  temptations  of  the  surrounding 
chaos  of  affairs,  matters,  feelings  and  duties,  so  multi- 
plied and  more  and  more  complex.  Oh !  the  American 
women  contain  a  rich  endowment  of  energy,  of  will, 
of  sincerity  and  stability.  Certainly  I  am  proud,  but 
I  would  not  abuse,  and  take  more  than  is  due." 

On  the  backs  of  three  picture  postcards,  reproductions 
of  pictures  by  famous  Russian  painters,  Madame 
Breshkovsky  wrote  an  explanation  of  each.  The  first 
shows  a  young  man  in  student  uniform,  and  a  young 
woman,  with  smiling  faces,  stepping  hand  in  hand  into 
stormy  surf.  She  writes  : 

"A  student  must  wear  a  uniform,  and  many  of  our 
women  students  like  to  be  *  fashionable.'  The  painter 
represents  life  as  a  sea.  The  young  couple  are  ready  to 
throw  themselves  into  it,  having  faith  in  their  strength 
and  in  the  ideal  they  picture.  Certainly  only  a  part 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    251 

of  those  radiant  beings  retain  for  long  the  thrillings  of 
their  hearts,  and  most  of  them  are  lost  in  the  depths  of 
common  life,  with  its  petty  demands  and  cares.  A 
part  of  them  become  very  superficial  people,  the  boys 
especially.  Yet  there  are  exceptions ;  we  have  had 
them.  I  confess  I  do  not  like  this  genre,  for  I  cannot 
depend  on  people  who  are  so  light-hearted,  so  super- 
ficial. Profound  natures  make  me  happy." 

The  second  shows  a  young  peasant  woman  working 
in  the  field  with  a  horse.  Madame  Breshkovsky 
says: 

"Perhaps  a  young  widow,  perhaps  the  oldest  of  a 
group  of  orphan  children.  She  works  hard,  but  she 
will  not  desert  her  duty.  When  a  girl,  she  will  not 
marry  till  all  her  brothers  and  sisters  are  conveniently 
placed.  She  is  a  responsible  being  before  God  and  her 
community,  and  she  will  do  all  she  ought,  very  seldom 
complaining  of  her  heavy  fate.  She  is  head  of  the  house, 
and  all  her  pride  and  honor  lie  in  performing  the  work 
done  by  her  late  parents.  Very  often  such  girls  remain 
unmarried  till  the  end,  attached  as  they  are  to  the  wel- 
fare of  the  family.  I  am  sure  that  if  it  were  possible  to 
issue  a  call  to  the  peasant  women  in  order  to  have 
nurses  enough  for  the  orphan  children  scattered  through 
the  country,  we  should  have  plenty  of  '  mothers '  ready 
to  bring  up  deserted  families  as  tenderly  and  devotedly 
as  possible.  I  am  sure  it  would  be  so  with  us,  and  no 
doubt  it  would  be  so  everywhere,  for  the  woman  soul 
is  the  same." 

The  third  card  shows  a  young  girl  leaning  against  a 
white  birch  tree  in  a  thoughtful  attitude.  It  is  en- 


252    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

titled  "Fancies  not  to  be  fulfilled."     Madame  Bresh- 

kovsky  says : 

i 

"Perhaps  personal,  perhaps  altruistic  fancies.  We 
have  many  such  types,  but  they  are  not  quite  Russian. 
It  is  a  blend  of  Russian  with  some  other  blood.  In 
England  or  America  she  would  be  a  missionary.  In 
Russia  the  intelligent  people  are  not  pious ;  they  strive 
to  be  rational  in  the  highest  sense  of  the  word.  Yet  to 
be  so,  one  must  be  very  strong  and  renounce  one's  own 
comfort ;  consequently  those  with  less  strong  characters 
are  vacillating,  and  muse  too  long  on  the  path  they 
ought  to  choose.  I  pity  such  girls  much,  for  they  are 
honest  and  sincere,  and  most  of  them  remain  unsatisfied 
all  their  lives.  Even  when  they  are  married  and  have 
a  family  they  feel  as  if  they  were  guilty,  as  if  they  had 
thrown  away  some  treasure  that  will  never  be  found 
again.  How  happy  are  those  who  are  sure  of  the  way 
they  have  taken !  This  certainty  makes  one  master 
of  the  world,  which  is  only  a  stage,  a  beautiful  one,  for 
one's  activity,  and  the  object  as  well  as  the  source  of 
one's  love." 

To  Lewis  Herreshoff.     (Undated) 

"Your  letter  with  the  check  reached  me  in  safety, 
but  I  was  embarrassed,  not  knowing  what  to  do  with  it. 
We  have  no  bank,  no  bankers  in  this  wild  country, 
and  the  money  was  so  much  needed  before  New  Year's 
Day !  I  resolved  to  send  the  check  to  Irkutsk,  where 
there  is  a  branch  of  the  Russian  Asiatic  Bank,  asking 
them  to  return  me  the  money  by  wire.  So  I  did,  and 
to  my  great  pleasure,  instead  of  47  rubles  I  got  145 
rubles.  Some  lady  of  my  acquaintance  learned  the 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    253 

fact,  and  added  the  100.  I  was  so  much  surprised  that 
I  wired  once  more  to  know  for  sure,  whether  it  was  not 
a  mistake.  To  my  great  joy  it  was  not,  and  so  your 
gift  reached  me  in  threefold  size.  Your  promise  to 
gratify  me  every  year  with  $25  gives  me  great  satis- 
faction, for  I  do  not  spend  much  for  myself,  and  this 
sum  will  be  my  own.  Thank  you,  Lewis,  my  friend, 
very  good  and  chivalrous !  You  men  cannot  be  other- 
wise in  America,  where  you  have  such  excellent 
women.  I  only  wish  the  success  that  follows  their 
energy  may  never  make  of  them  such  business-like 
people  as  most  of  your  men  are.  For  nothing  in  the 
world  is  so  lovable  as  a  good  heart,  a  sympathizing 
character.  When  a  human  creature  sincerely  smiles 
upon  another,  one  feels  one's  self  so  well,  more  sure  of 
one's  safety.  It  is  a  horror  to  think  that  a  human  being 
can  be  a  monster  to  his  fellow  creatures,  a  monster  that 
is  feared  and  hated.  And  yet  there  are  so  many 
educated  Europeans  who  are  pumping  sweat  and  blood 
out  of  their  neighbors'  veins  ! 

"I  am  deeply  interested  in  the  literary  career  of  my 
friend  Arthur  Bullard,  known  by  his  pen  name  as 
Albert  Edwards. 

"As  for  the  romances  and  novels  that  are  so  numerous 
in  all  the  magazines  which  I  get  (and  I  get  the  best  ones), 
they  are  tedious  with  scandals  of  every  sort.  We  have 
among  us  also  a  lot  of  foolish  writings,  but  they  have 
their  place  apart ;  they  are  printed  by  the  magazines 
destined  for  the  street  and  for  ignorant  people.  Our 
best  magazines  are  careful  in  choosing  the  articles  and 
novels  to  be  put  in.  We  do  not  prize  so  much  art 
which  does  not  contain  any  noble  idea.  Literature  as 
well  as  painting,  sculpture,  music,  and  other  arts 


254    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

must  not  only  be  perfectly  performed,  but  must  contain 
a  meaning,  or  a  majestic  or  noble  idea,  to  be  honored 
and  admired. 

"I  am  sure  our  nation  is  an  enigma  to  all  the  rest. 
Having  a  sense  of  religion,  of  the  holiness  of  human 
destiny,  a  love  for  all  that  is  courageous  and  self- 
sacrificing,  a  taste  for  the  beauty  of  earth  and  heaven 
—  with  all  this  our  people  endure  a  most  miserable 
mode  of  life,  always  waiting  for  a  miracle  to  get  rid 
of  it.  We  are  not  so  lazy  as  the  Italian  lazzaroni, 
but  we  are  slow,  we  contemplate  instead  of  acting. 
It  is  our  misfortune.  Our  peasants  in  Russia  (not 
in  Siberia)  are  like  Diogenes;  they  can  understand 
everything  and  reason  about  everything,  and  yet 
are  capable  of  living  like  savages  in  cabins  fit  for 
cattle.  .  .  . 

"I  could  not  continue  yesterday,  for  there  were 
'boys'  the  whole  evening.  Some  of  them  must  have 
long  talks  with  me,  often  on  the  subject  of  their  mood, 
sadness,  or  longings  that  inhabit  their  minds  and  torment 
them.  I  am  here  like  a  priest,  who  must  know  all  about 
his  people,  and  have  patience  to  hear  all  the  details 
which  my  orphan  boys  have  to  confess.  With  me  they 
are  openhearted,  being  sure  I  love  them  and  sympathize 
with  all  their  griefs.  Most  of  them  are  afraid  to  do 
anything  wrong,  for  my  sake ;  my  severity  as  to  prin- 
ciples is  respected,  and  those  who  do  not  follow  them  as 
strictly  as  they  ought  are  much  embarrassed  when  they 
come  to  see  me.  I  am  not  implacable,  but  I  am  sure 
that  every  man  and  woman  must  form  the  habit  of 
careful  self-control  from  their  tender  youth.  And  I 
am  so  much  obliged  to  my  parents  for  having  taught 
me  this  duty." 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    255 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     February  12-25,  1913. 

"From  my  childhood  I  have  never  sympathized 
with  the  dualism  of  sentiments  and  devotion.  One 
may  have  a  very  complex  character,  one  may  admire 
the  whole  world  and  understand  all  the  beauties  con- 
tained in  it;  one  may  be  happy  to  sympathize  with 
every  perfection  of  nature  and  art ;  and  yet  one  must 
have  along  with  all  these  riches  an  aim,  a  God,  a  virtue, 
or  a  principle,  that  will  stand  above  all  the  rest.  And 
while  enjoying  the  luxury  of  life,  one  must  be  ready  at 
every  moment  to  perform  one's  duty  towards  the  aim 
that  stands  over  all.  That  is  my  ideal  of  a  human 
being ;  and  I  must  add  that  the  more  superior  the  aim 
chosen  to  stand  highest  is  to  other  aims  or  ends  of  life, 
the  more  valuable  is  the  person  who  has  chosen  it. 

"My  health  is  much  better  this  winter,  which  seems 
to  have  no  end.  All  is  right  with  me  except  my  poor 
heart,  which  is  always  thrilling  with  sorrow  for  my 
starving  boys,  with  no  hopes  for  a  better  future  for 
them ;  for  we  expect  this  summer  more  and  more  people 
who  have  served  their  terms  in  the  hard  labor  prisons. 
What  can  we  do  ?  One  must  endure  the  world's  pain, 
and  be  satisfied  to  be  able  to  do  it." 

To  Arthur  Bullard,  with  a  photograph.     February 

14-27. 

"Here  I  am  in  my  American  overcoat,  sitting  at  my 
large  table,  and  sewing  a  shirt  for  one  of  our  poor  boys. 
Behind  is  a  commode  with  my  various  possessions. 
My  armchair  being  upholstered  with  light-colored 
stuff,  I  put  my  black  skirt  over  the  back  of  it,  in  order 
to  have  my  white  hair  stand  out  from  the  furni- 


256    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

ture.  And  while  sitting  at  my  little  work,  I  listen  to 
the  thoughts  and  fancies  of  my  young  friend,  Arthur 
Bullard,  as  he  creates  the  world  of  man's  and  woman's 
life,  trying  to  bring  them  out  of  old  traditions  and 
corrupted  morals,  to  enter  a  more  human,  more 
brotherly-constructed  mode  of  life.  It  makes  me  very 
happy  to  see  such  a  majestic  commonwealth  as  the 
American  States  awakening  to  a  more  righteous  and 
ethical  life.  This  effort  will  stir  the  energy  of  other 
countries,  not  so  quick  to  attain  the  end  put  before 
them.  I  bless  you  for  doing  your  best  for  your  people, 
for  the  growing  youth,  that  before  all  must  be  human 
toward  every  one  who  needs  care  and  bounty.  Too 
selfish,  too  narrow  is  the  human  world,  and  cowardly 
subjugated  to  all  the  prejudices  of  mean  spirits.  Hold- 
ing stiffly  to  all  these  prejudices,  one  cannot  remain  just 
toward  the  mass  of  the  people  that  is  struggling  for  the 
first  necessities  of  life.  Severe  we  ought  to  be  towards 
ourselves  and  other  intelligent  and  well-to-do  indi- 
viduals, but  all  the  rest,  all  who  are  deprived  of  mental 
and  material  welfare,  are  to  be  helped  only  to  come 
over  the  abyss  ready  to  swallow  them  at  every  mo- 
ment." 

To  Effie  Danforth  McAfee.     March  15-28,  1913. 

"Till  now  there  has  not  been  a  mail  that  has  not 
brought  me  something  from  America.  This  has  not 
only  made  me  a  devoted  friend  of  the  United  States, 
but  has  made  me  feel  like  a  relation,  especially  to  the 
American  women,  whom  I  praise  as  a  beautiful  species 
of  the  human  race.  Their  energy  and  cleverness  are 
equalled  only  by  the  women  of  Finland,  who  amazed 
me  by  their  fitness  for  all  that  is  worthy  to  be  done. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    257 

That  little  country  is  a  wonder  of  hard  work  and 
stability  of  character.  The  women  there  are  the  best 
part  of  the  population. 

"  My  opinion  is  that  everywhere  on  earth  the  women 
are  more  exquisite  creatures  and  much  less  corrupted 
than  the  men.  But  the  difference  between  the  two  sexes 
is  not  the  same  in  every  country.  I  think,  so  far  as  I 
see,  that  all  the  northern  countries  have  a  most  high 
contingent  of  women,  because  they  have  more  time  and 
chance  to  improve  their  minds,  wiiile  the  men  are  so 
busy  with  the  material  side  of  life.  But  in  Russia,  for 
instance,  the  opportunity  to  study  and  to  perfect  one's 
self  is  very  hard  for  both  sexes.  Consequently  the 
boys  and  girls  are  on  an  equal  level  of  education,  and 
so  understand  each  other  quite  well.  We  should  not 
have  a  'woman  question,'  for  the  women  would  not 
ask  but  take  their  rights  as  a  matter  of  course.  Now 
every  one  is  a  slave,  then  everybody  would  be  free." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     March  15-28,  1913. 

"My  own  experience  seems  to  me  a  small  matter 
compared  with  the  sufferings  of  others,  perhaps  be- 
cause of  my  strong  constitution  of  body  and  spirit. 
And  perhaps  it  has  not  happened  to  me  to  endure  such 
tortures  as  were  the  case  with  others.  Now,  this  very 
year,  we  have  so  many  diseases,  insanities  and  suicides, 
that  sometimes  my  strong  soul  is  going  mad.  I  feel 
as  if  I  were  thrown  into  hell,  where  I  cannot  find  an 
issue. 

"In  the  first  place,  the  longer  the  exiles  remain  in 
such  wicked  conditions,  the  less  strength  they  have  to 
resist  them.  Secondly,  during  the  last  two  years  we 
have  had  a  lot  of  boys  who  were  sent  out  from  the 


258    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

prisons  where  they  had  finished  their  terras  at  hard 
labor.  The  conditions  in  these  prisons  are  so  atrocious 
that  in  three  or  four  years  a  young,  strong  man  becomes 
an  invalid  for  life,  and  very  often  is  deprived  of  his 
mental  capacities.  If  he  is  not  tortured  himself,  he  be- 
comes there  a  daily  and  nightly  witness  of  the  tortures 
of  his  comrades,  who  are  beaten,  starved,  thrown  into 
dungeons  and  humiliated.  The  more  clever,  the  more 
energetic  are  sure  to  spend  some  years  in  these  special 
prisons,  and  we  receive  them  bruised,  destroyed  by  con- 
sumption, and  very  often  insane. 

"And  here,  in  Siberia,  matters  are  going  worse. 
Before  the  festivities  took  place,  we  were  warned  that 
after  the  'Manifesto'  new  severities  would  be  intro- 
duced. But  they  were  enforced  everywhere,  in  Russia 
and  here,  even  before,  and  an  innumerable  quantity  of 
people  are  arrested  everywhere  and  sent  into  the  more 
remote  places.  All  this  is  horrible,  but  it  is  shameful 
too,  for  such  a  great  country  ought  not  to  endure  such 
calamities.  Nobody  can  picture  to  himself  all  the 
horrors,  all  the  miseries,  all  the  disgraces  the  people 
endure.  There,  above,  it  cannot  be  seen,  for  the 
gentlefolk  and  bureaucrats  are  very  nice  towards  free 
people.  But  all  who  are  not  'gentle,'  all  who  are 
captive,  see  well  the  underside  of  life,  and  cannot  be 
happy.  I  beg  your  pardon  for  such  an  ugly  letter." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     March  30-April  2,  1913. 

"Yes,  all  is  well  for  some  time,  except  the  news 
about  Arthur.  In  a  hospital !  Oh,  dear  and  poor 
boy !  What  a  pity  for  such  a  noble  spirit !  I  am  not 
an  admirer  of  myself,  for  instance,  but,  being  sure  of 
my  sincerity  and  good  will,  which  make  me  ready  to 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    259 

serve  my  neighbor,  I  wish  to  live  as  long  as  my  mental 
capacities  render  me  able  to  be  of  use.  There  is  not  yet 
a  very  large  lot  of  strong-minded  and  good-hearted  people 
on  our  earth ;  therefore  we  must  spare  them,  and  do  our 
utmost  to  retain  their  spirits  with  us  longer  and  longer. 

"Last  night  I  was  awakened  by  a  terrible  headache, 
which  continued  till  now,  4  P.M.  At  first  I  could  not 
explain  my  misfortune,  but  when  I  saw  through  the 
window  a  thick  snow  falling,  I  understood  directly. 
Since  I  made  acquaintance  with  prisons,  my  blood  has 
not  been  so  thick  and  so  red,  and  it  cannot  resist  the 
pressure  of  a  condensed  atmosphere,  as  it  could  before 
my  imprisonment,  when  I  was  a  very  Cossack  in 
strength  and  health.  But  now  that  the  heaven  is  not 
so  heavy,  I  feel  better,  and  can  continue  my  affairs. 
It  is  the  same  with  all  my  sorrows.  It  is  very  hard  to 
encounter  each  of  the  new  ones.  But  when  you  put 
your  mind  to  action,  to  the  search  how  to  do  your  best, 
you  have  no  time  to  spend  on  weeping,  and  you  feel 
.  better,  seeing  that  your  efforts  are  not  quite  in  vain. 

"I  am  angry  with  myself  for  having  written  you  my 
last  letter,  in  which  I  deplored  the  horrors  of  the  life 
of  our  exiles.  We  must  be  accustomed  to  it,  and  none 
of  us  could  expect  a  better  lot.  And  so  you  can  be 
tranquil  on  my  account,  my  shoulders  being  ready  to 
bear  every  load. 

"  April  2-15,  1913. 

"I  find  that,  if  my  life  had  passed  without  the  ex- 
periences I  have  had,  it  would  be  very  poor  and  short- 
sighted. Now,  as  the  hard  and  wicked  sides  of  life 
are  familiar  to  me,  I  can  judge  what  my  people 
suffer,  what  every  person  in  such  or  such  a  position 


260    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

suffers,  and  this  makes  me  more  indulgent,  and  better 
able  to  divine  the  sufferings  of  others,  their  inner  life 
and  feelings.  Sometimes  when  I  feel  impatient  with 
the  crowd  of  visitors,  I  say  to  myself :  *  For  shame,  old 
woman !  You  do  not  find  it  easy  to  bear  the  presence 
of  good,  unlucky  people,  while  these  people  have  to  bear 
during  the  best  part  of  their  lives  the  rudest  and  most 
severe  experiences  that  a  black  soul  can  imagine.' 
This  thought  makes  me  gentle  and  patient. 

"Dear  friend,  it  is  vain  for  Aunt  Isabel  to  believe  in 
the  possibility  of  some  day  seeing  me  at  liberty.  We 
must  expect  nothing  good  from  a  set  of  people  who 
manufacture  only  dishonor  for  their  country." 

George  Lazareff  to  Miss  Blackwell.     Clarens,  Switzer- 
land, March  31,  1913. 

"Now  the  amnesty1  has  been  proclaimed.  It  was  not 
for  the  political  offenders,  but  only  for  some  criminal 
bureaucrats,  who  had  robbed  the  State  treasury. 
Even  the  exiles  banished  by  administrative  order  have 
not  been  released.  On  the  contrary,  the  persecutions 
have  been  intensified." 

Mrs.  Olive  T.  Dargan's  book  of  plays,  "Lords  and 
Lovers",  including  her  Russian  play  "The  Shepherd", 
had  been  sent  to  Madame  Breshkovsky  by  Miss  Alice 
Lewissohn. 

To  Miss  Blackwell.    June  3-16,  1913. 

"I  have  received  a  book  containing  three  dramas, 
one  of  which  aims  to  represent  some  types  of  our  last 

1  It  had  been  announced  thnt  the  three  hundredth  anniversary  of  the 
Romanoff  dynasty  would  be  celebrated  by  granting  an  amnesty  to  many 
prisoners. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    261 

revolution,  to  give  a  glimpse  of  this  original  event. 
But  one  sees  at  once  that  the  author  is  not  acquainted 
with  the  real  life  of  the  people  she  speaks  of,  and  all 
the  entourage  is  taken  from  what  she  knows  and  sees 
in  other  countries.  Nevertheless  I  am  very  glad  to 
have  this  piece,  for  the  foundation,  the  reasons  for  the 
troubles,  are  represented  as  they  are  in  reality,  truly." 

To  Mrs.  Barrows.     June  20-July  1,  1913. 

"Your  book,  'A  Sunny  Life,'  is  one  of  the  everlasting 
writings.  I  mean  it  will  be  good  always.  It  is  of  the 
same  kind  as  the  books  that  tell  us  about  the  lives  of  men 
like  St.  Francis  of  Assisi.  Such  books  are  not  merely 
portraits  of  beautiful  characters,  but  they  are  also 
historic  documents  of  great  value.  As  in  a  mirror  one 
sees  the  moral  capacities  of  the  epoch  described,  and 
can  judge  the  path  and  the  progress  toward  the  per- 
fection of  human  nature.  A  thousand  years  will  pass, 
and  the  book  will  be  read  with  as  much  interest  as  now ; 
perhaps  with  even  more,  for  it  gives  a  picture  of  moral 
welfare,  of  the  happiness  of  a  whole  family,  due  only  to 
its  own  perfection." 

On  a  picture  card.     To  June  Barrows  Mussey. 

"How  do  you  do,  my  dear  grandson?  This  pretty 
girl  wants  to  make  acquaintance  with  you,  and  to  show 
you  the  little  dogs  she  is  nursing  with  such  pleasure. 
It  is  good  that  she  loves  every  living  thing,  but  you 
must  remember  to  tell  her  that  the  largest  share  of 
our  love  and  attention  belongs  to  human  beings. 
Children,  women,  and  men,  as  having  a  more  elevated 
spirit,  must  be  attended,  in  order  that  they  may  become 
yet  better,  quite  reasonable." 


262    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

To  Miss  Blackwell.    July  31-August  13,  1913. 

"  What  unexpected  news !  You  were  dangerously 
ill.  You  were  operated  on !  Our  dear  Sophie  will 
write  me  about  your  health.  What  does  it  mean,  so 
many  diseases?  And  I  have  been  well  all  this  time, 
notwithstanding  the  wet  weather  we  have  had  this 
month.  My  lodging  was  undergoing  repairs  for  more 
than  two  weeks.  I  spent  them  in  a  very  disgusting 
cabin,  and  yet  my  health  did  not  suffer.  Now  again  I 
am  comfortable  in  my  palace,  which  is  clean,  bright  and 
warm:  excellent,  indeed!  So  many  pictures  around, 
from  America  and  Switzerland;  many  books,  a  gramo- 
phone and  a  sewing  machine.  My  wardrobe  is  full, 
my  dinners  always  good.  And,  what  is  most  appre- 
ciated by  me,  I  have  some  money  to  divide  with  my 
poor  comrades." 

(Madame  Breshkovsky  was  provided  by  friends  in 
Europe  and  America  with  a  small  fund  with  which  to 
help  the  other  exiles,  to  buy  tools  for  them,  etc.) 

To  Miss  Dudley.    August  12-25,  1913. 

"One  good  soul  wrote  me  you  are  well  and  look 
quite  flourishing  and  shining.  God  bless  you!  I  can 
say  the  same  of  myself  —  blossoming ! 

"I  rejoice  that  you  were  pleased  with  *A  Man's 
World.'  I  am  even  afraid  I  shall  not  be  as  well  pleased 
with  'Comrade  Yetta.'  There  was  a  character  that 
questioned  and  searched,  with  all  the  earnestness  of  a 
noble  soul.  Here  we  shall  have  perhaps  a  character 
formed  from  the  beginning  of  the  world,  I  mean  an 
integral  force,  which  never  doubted,  never  relinquished, 
was  never  weak.  There  are  those  diamonds  amidst 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    263 

mankind.  I  admire  them ;  they  are  like  stars  to  show 
us  our  way,  and  to  assure  us  of  the  possibility  of  such 
perfection  on  earth;  their  march  is  beautiful  and  bril- 
liant, their  brow  is  serene  and  majestic,  they  never 
stoop  their  heads,  and  the  heads  of  others  bow  before 
them.  And  yet  such  splendid  characters  are  a  result 
of  the  work  (historic  work),  which  we  cannot  pursue  nor 
analyze ;  they  are  something  ready,  finished,  not  to  be 
studied  and  dissected.  When  we  see  such  perfection 
we  can  only  guess,  and  we  may  mistake,  not  knowing 
the  sources  of  such  an  apparition.  Another  thing,  — 
when  our  attention  is  attracted  to  the  process  itself  of 
the  construction  of  the  psychology  of  a  soul,  it  struggles 
through  life  and  is  obliged  to  gain  bit  by  bit  the  ground 
where  it  resolves  to  stand,  for  which  it  resolves  to  fight. 
I  have  seen  many  young  people  who  envied  characters 
free  from  weaknesses  and  defects;  they  find  it  very 
hard  to  struggle  against  the  blamable  habits  inherited 
or  acquired;  they  would  prefer  to  feel  themselves 
without  failure.  When  young  I  wished  it  too,  for  I 
was  very  much  ashamed  of  my  weaknesses,  felt  un- 
happy after  every  fault  I  committed.  Now  I  prefer 
characters  that  have  had  to  do  with  many  temptations 
during  their  youth,  and  come  out  victors  from  a  serious 
struggle,  fortified,  with  a  strong  will  and  understanding 
of  their  own  capacities  and  ability,  and  of  human  nature 
in  its  consistence  nowadays.  Such  people  become  more 
exacting  towards  themselves  and  more  indulgent 
towards  others,  for  they  know  how  difficult  it  is  to 
overcome  the  passions  implanted  by  nature  in  our  being 
before  we  are  acquainted  with  it.  The  inheritance  of 
different  weaknesses,  as  well  as  the  undesired  habits 
acquired  by  an  education  full  of  prejudices,  give  us  a 


264    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

heavy  task  to  clean  ourselves  all  our  life  long,  and,  once 
diligent  enough  to  fulfill  this  task,  consciously,  the  work 
we  put  in  makes  us  vigilant,  develops  our  energy  and 
enlarges  our  mind  infinitely.  The  earnest  desire 
to  be  as  good  as  possible  is  a  stimulant  which  influences 
the  development  of  all  our  best  qualities  and  capacities. 
The  older  we  are,  the  wiser.  And  we  do  not  cease  to 
love  the  world  that  has  given  us  the  great  happiness 
of  mounting  higher  and  higher. 

"How  charming  it  is  that  behind  every  one  of  my 
friends  in  America,  there  is  another  friend  watching 
over  my  safety,  and  always  alert  to  be  there  when 
needed !  Sophie  Siebker,  Agnes  E.  Ryan,  Miss 
Scudder,  Ellen  Starr,  our  dear  Lillian,  and  many  good 
souls  are  ready  to  inform  me  about  what  concerns  my 
three  angels  before  all,  and  about  all  that  is  so  dear  to 
me  in  your  beautiful  country.  I  am  so  happy  as  to  see 
and  to  learn  the  best  sides  of  American  life,  for  I  have 
to  do  with  the  best  people,  the  best  papers,  and  best 
magazines.  I  see  from  my  distance  so  many  splendid 
pleiades  or  sets  of  women  and  men  that  seem  devoted 
exclusively  to  the  welfare  of  the  great  problems  of 
human  life.  The  questions  of  ethics  and  eugenics  are 
making  great  progress,  and  spirited  minds  are  working 
with  enthusiasm  to  forward  them  quickly,  in  their  eager- 
ness to  see  the  world  more  and  more  conscious  of  the 
divine  gifts  with  which  nature  has  endowed  it.  Yes,  it 
seems  strange  when  we  compare  high-minded  with 
low-thinking  people.  All  the  great  questions  are  so 
simple  to  solve  if  one  has  passed  one's  time  in  studying 
about  them,  in  thinking  of  them.  And  yet  there  are 
millions  to  whom  the  same  questions  are  quite  strange, 
a  terra  incognita,  not  worthy  of  belief. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    265 

"And  now,  if  we  see  and  know  only  the  best  part  of 
humanity,  the  smallest  part,  we  do  not  know  the  whole 
reality,  and  may  be  cheated  in  our  ignorance.  But 
also  if  we  remain  only  with  the  other,  the  majority, 
made  up  of  the  ignorant  and  low-minded,  we  become 
pessimistic,  and  our  energy  in  fighting  the  wilderness 
and  the  darkness  is  greatly  diminished. 

"Enclosed  are  two  photos  showing  my  gemusegarten 
(cabbages,  potatoes,  etc.).  Here  I  am  with  my  two 
comrades  (cultivators),  and  the  two  figures  with  little 
geese  are  the  owners  of  the  domain  where  my  friends 
lodge,  and  where  I  have  rented  some  beds  for  my 
plantings.  They  wished  eagerly  to  be  photographed  in 
our  company.  Every  one  says  I  am  not  so  old  as  the 
photos  make  me  look.  Perhaps  it  is  because  somehow 
in  speaking  and  smiling  one  always  seems  younger  and 
lively.  But  when  alone  and  quiet,  I  must  look  as 
old  as  I  do  here,  though  my  heart  remains  always 
young." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     August  26-September  8,  1913. 

"I  feel  so  constrained  when  I  write  in  English! 
This  feeling  of  bashfulness  has  its  root  in  the  education 
I  received  from  my  childhood.  My  mother  was  never 
tired  of  repeating,  'Do  well  everything  that  you  do. 
Never  allow  yourself  to  be  inexact  and  negligent.'  It 
was  considered  a  shame  to  make  mistakes  when  writing 
or  speaking  any  language,  and  I  feel  so  to  this  day. 
This  has  kept  me  from  writing  to  so  warm  a  friend  as 
Arthur  Bullard.  I  love  him  as  well  as  the  best  boys 
of  my  own  country,  and  God  knows  how  much  I  love 
them,  how  proud  I  am  of  them. 

"Aunt  Isabel's  illness  kept  me  silent  for  a  long  time. 


260    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

It  was  as  if  I  spread  my  ears  to  catch  the  sounds  of 
her  respiration  and  the  knocking  of  her  heart.  I 
watched  her  sleep;  and,  anxious  to  understand  her 
thoughts,  I  examined  with  my  imagination  all  her 
surroundings,  running  from  one  object  to  another, 
and  from  Mabel  to  Henry  and  little  June.  I  feared 
the  doctors,  so  serious  and  grave,  and  could  never 
wholly  understand  their  intentions.  I  said  to  myself : 
*  They  have  deprived  our  Isabel  of  all  her  teeth ;  what 
will  they  do  next?'  Now  that  I  hear  she  is  getting 
better,  I  do  not  suspect  the  great  savants,  but  before 
that,  I  did  not  love  them. 

"Somebody  has  sent  me  'The  New  Freedom,'  by 
your  President  Wilson.  Very  interesting." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     September  9-22,  1913. 

"'Miss  Caroline  I.  Reilly  is  spending  a  month  with 
Miss  Alice  Stone  Blackwell  at  her  summer  cottage  at 
Chilmark,  Mass.'  This  news  has  made  me  a  sincere 
friend  of  the  very  noble  Miss  Caroline,  whose  hands  I 
kiss;  but  I  cannot  conceal  that  I  was  jealous  of  her 
pleasure  in  remaining  with  you  for  so  long  a  time.  I 
am  only  afraid  that  my  presence  would  be  a  burden, 
for  we  Russians  are  too  expansive.  I  mean  we  show  too 
often  and  too  much  caresses  and  tenderness,  to  which 
your  people  are  not  accustomed.  It  is  very  hard  for 
me  to  refrain  from  pouring  out  my  feelings  towards 
one  whom  I  love  much.  Nevertheless  I  understand 
how  tired  the  person  may  feel,  and  object  to  ever- 
lasting tenderness. 

"The  same  issue  (No.  32)  brought  your  articles. 
Your  strong,  experienced  hand  and  mind  are  here  like 
a  hammer  that  strikes  every  question  at  its  due  place. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    267 

"All  the  money  I  get  from  your  country  is  an 
enormous  profit  to  us  all.  Certainly,  in  my  position 
the  comfort  you  have  guaranteed  is  of  great  value  to 
me ;  but  all  this  is  little  compared  with  the  value  of  the 
friendship,  the  moral  support  that  my  friends  in  America 
have  granted  me.  Your  love  and  esteem  is  a  force 
which  can  never  fail,  which  is  with  me  always,  and 
everywhere,  even  in  my  tomb.  Unknown  as  I  am  in 
your  country,  I  feel  as  if  I  were  one  of  its  members, 
never  to  be  rejected  or  cast  out. 

"  September  12-25. 

"Soon  I  shall  write  to  Ellen  Starr  about  your  Presi- 
dent's book.  I  was  agreeably  surprised  in  reading  it : 
but  I  am  not  sure  how  much  will  be  done. 

"My  beloved  daughter,  take  patiently  all  the  kisses 
I  send  you,  and  pardon  my  obstinacy." 

To  Ellen  Starr.     September  26,  1913. 

"Your  face  is  as  fresh  as  ever  in  my  memory.  If  we 
met  to-day  we  should  perhaps  find  each  other  somewhat 
changed  outwardly,  but  our  spiritual  state  remains 
always  the  same,  and  we  should  know  each  other  at 
once.  I  am  sure  our  friendship  would  be  even  more 
familiar,  because  the  long  years  of  separation  have 
given  us  ample  proofs  of  the  stability  of  our  feelings 
and  of  our  moral  tastes.  Yes,  dear  friend,  you  are  a 
soul  that  I  do  not  fear  to  approach,  having  learned  in 
the  course  of  years  that  the  tendency  toward  every- 
thing beautiful  and  pure  is  the  very  essence  of  your 
noble  heart. 

"I  look  in  vain  for  your  name  among  the  illustrious 
names  of  your  American  women;  it  is  not  there,  nor 


268    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

that  of  Helena  Dudley,  that  incomparable  saint,  always 
kneeling  at  the  feet  of  her  God  of  mercy.  Once  Helena 
was  mentioned  as  about  to  take  charge  of  a  newly- 
established  settlement  outside  of  Boston.  Alice's 
name  is  always  there  (nolens  volens)  as  editor  of  her 
paper,  which  really  constitutes  an  epoch  in  itself  in 
the  history  of  the  woman  movement  of  the  whole  world. 
Well,  you  three  virgins  who  have  devoted  yourselves 
to  serving  the  world  without  asking  anything  of  it, 
without  reaping  any  reward  from  it  —  you  may  re- 
main unknown  to  the  world,  loved  and  appreciated 
only  by  those  who  know  you  personally,  who  have 
learned  to  cherish  the  memory  of  your  characters,  able 
to  respond  to  the  cries  of  those  who  are  suffering  far 
away  from  you.  That  is  beautiful,  it  is  immortal ;  but 
it  does  not  always  meet  with  its  reward  in  this  world. 
Nevertheless  it  is  well  to  remain  so  to  the  end  of  our 
days,  for  nothing  is  so  precious  as  a  conscience  sure  of 
itself  and  tranquil  as  to  the  choice  of  the  road  that  it  has 
preferred  to  all  others.  The  only  thing  that  grieves  me 
is  the  loss  of  persons  who  are  the  ornament  of  our  race. 
"I  have  just  finished  Woodrow  Wilson's  book, 
'The  New  Freedom.'  I  am  enchanted  with  it.  He 
has  exceptional  talent  as  a  speaker,  and  as  a  writer 
who  knows  how  to  set  forth  his  thought  as  clearly  as 
he  carries  it  in  his  head.  Jamais  de  quiproquo,  jamais 
de  malentendu,  et  avec  $a,  logique  et  consequent  tout  le 
long  du  traiti.  If  that  man  set  out  from  the  standpoint 
of  Socialism,  he  would  be  magnificent  in  his  arguments, 
and  his  nation  would  be  grateful  to  him  throughout  its 
whole  history ;  for  a  sound  idea,  explained  by  so  fine  a 
talent,  remains  in  the  people's  minds  forever,  even  if 
at  first  it  is  not  accepted  in  its  entirety. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    269 

"At  all  events,  if  we  take  literally  all  the  aspirations 
expressed  by  your  present  President,  he  would  make  a 
remarkable  reformer  if  he  should  try  with  sincerity  to 
make  over  a  constitution  which  no  longer  harmonizes 
with  the  rights  and  the  prosperity  of  the  people  whose 
ruler  he  is. 

"Many,  many  of  my  old  friends  and  comrades  have 
been  passing  away  of  late  years.  I  look  upon  myself 
as  an  old  tree  among  a  crowd  of  youths,  and  I  try  to  be 
understood  by  my  juniors,  and  to  be  indulgent  towards 
them. 

"I  feel  strong  till  now,  but  seeing  how  quickly  my 
old  friends  are  carried  off  by  illness  and  death,  I  think 
sometimes  everything  is  possible ;  one  good  cold  might 
easily  make  an  end  of  the  matter. 

"I  have  on  my  table  one  little  picture  representing 
Cornelia  de  Bey,  'the  most  active  brain  in  Chicago,' 
as  one  magazine  says.  I  remember  so  well  this  noble 
Hollandaise,  who  captured  me  at  first  sight.  I  passed 
a  night  at  her  house,  and  saw  how  much  she  has  to  do. 
There  was  with  her  a  teacher,  a  different  type,  but  very 
accomplished  too.  Cornelia  is  a  figure  distinguished 
from  top  to  foot.  I  like  her  so  dearly.  Is  she  well 
now  ?  The  portrait  of  Miss  Addams  shows  her  much 
older,  and  I  wonder  how  she  can  suffice  to  fulfill  such 
a  lot  of  different  matters,  to  be  everywhere  at  once. 
Active  like  an  American ;  always  ready  for  the  need. 
Forgive  me  for  my  silence,  and  for  my  many  mistakes. 
You  might  fancy  me  ungrateful  from  the  fewness  of 
my  letters  ;  yet  my  heart  is  full  of  thankfulness.  Give 
my  good  wishes  to  all  who  will  accept  them." 


270    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

To  Miss  Wald.    September  20,  1913. 

"The  snow  already  covers  the  mountainous  borders 
of  the  superb  Lena,  and  frost  will  soon  fill  the  waters 
with  masses  of  ice,  which  will  interrupt  all  communi- 
cations, leaving  us  isolated  on  our  little  island,  entirely 
engulfed  by  cold,  ill  treated  by  the  north  wind. 

"It  is  strange!  Every  time  that  I  am  asked  to 
speak  about  myself,  I  am  always  confused,  and  find 
nothing  to  say.  Very  likely,  if  I  had  paid  more 
attention  to  the  outward  circumstances  of  my  life, 
there  would  be  enough  to  talk  about,  that  would  fill 
more  than  a  book.  But,  ever  since  my  childhood,  I 
have  been  in  the  habit  of  creating  a  spiritual  life,  an 
interior  world,  which  corresponded  better  with  my 
spiritual  tastes.  This  imaginary  world  has  had  the 
upper  hand  over  the  real  world  in  its  details,  over  all 
that  is  transient. 

"The  aim  of  our  existence,  the  perfecting  of  human 
nature,  has  always  been  present  in  my  vision,  in  my 
mind.  The  route,  the  direction  that  we  ought  to 
take,  in  order  to  approach  our  ideal,  was  for  me  a 
problem,  the  solution  of  which  absorbed  the  efforts 
of  my  entire  life.  I  was  implacable  to  myself  for  my 
weaknesses,  knowing  that  to  serve  a  divine  cause,  we 
must  be  at  least  honest  in  all  things;  we  must  sin- 
cerely love  the  object  of  our  devotion,  —  that  is  to 
say,  in  this  case,  humanity. 

"These  meditations,  this  interior  spiritual  work, 
and  a  strong  imagination,  which  always  carried  me  far 
beyond  the  present,  permitting  me  to  inhabit  the  most 
longed-for  regions,  all  combined  to  attract  but  very 
little  of  my  attention  to  daily  circumstances.  With- 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    271 

out  doubt  I  have  had  suffering  in  my  life,  but  I  have 
had  moments  of  joy,  even  of  happiness.  It  is  also 
true  that  the  struggle  with  my  failings,  with  my  habits 
engrafted  by  a  worldly  education,  has  cost  me  more  or 
less  dear.  The  misery  of  those  near  to  me  has  torn 
my  heart  to  the  extreme.  In  a  word,  my  life  has 
passed  in  the  same  way  as  a  bark  thrown  on  the  mercy 
of  a  sea  often  stormy.  But,  as  the  ideal  was  always 
there,  present  in  my  heart  and  in  my  mind,  it  guided 
me  in  my  course,  it  absorbed  me  to  such  a  degree  that 
I  did  not  feel,  in  their  fulness,  the  influence  of  passing 
events.  The  duty  to  serve  the  divine  cause  of  hu- 
manity in  its  entirety,  that  of  my  people  in  particular, 
has  been  the  law  of  my  life  —  the  supreme  law,  whose 
voice  quelled  my  passions,  my  desires,  my  weaknesses. 

"This  duty,  cultivated  from  infancy  by  religious 
sentiment,  then  fortified  in  its  certitude  by  attentive 
analysis  of  life  in  its  entirety,  formed  the  conviction 
that  there  is  nothing  in  the  world  so  profitable  for 
certain  happiness  as  to  serve  an  impeccable  cause,  a 
cause  the  noblest,  the  highest  among  all  known  to  the 
mind  of  man. 

"For  it  is  only  in  serving  the  cause  that  we  inevi- 
tably perfect  ourselves,  since  it  demands  the  most 
uplifting  transport  of  our  souls;  and  that  makes  us 
happy,  our  conscience  being  tranquil,  our  creative 
spirit  being  sure  of  victory. 

"I  am  sure  that  our  Alice,  as  well  as  Aunt  Isabel, 
remembers  how  difficult  it  was  for  me  to  speak  about 
myself,  when  that  was  exacted  of  me.  Since  I  live  in 
my  thoughts  more  than  by  emotion,  it  is  my  thoughts 
which  I  have  to  confess  more  than  the  facts  of  my  life. 
These  facts,  to  tell  the  truth,  are  confused  enough  in 


272    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

my  memory,  and  often  I  should  not  be  able  to  relate 
them  in  all  their  details.  Also,  in  conversing  with 
those  who  care  to  listen  to  me,  I  feel  that  I  am  monot- 
onous, for  it  is  always  my  ideals  and  my  abstract  obser- 
vations that  I  want  to  communicate  to  my  listeners. 
I  have  studied  a  great  deal  in  order  to  understand  even 
ever  so  little  of  the  origin  of  the  human  soul,  in  order 
to  understand  more  or  less  its  complexity  of  today. 

"There  lies  my  only  strength,  so  to  speak,  and  I 
continue  my  study,  knowing  how  complex  my  object 
of  study  is,  and  what  an  innumerable  quantity  of 
different  combinations,  of  types,  have  been  formed 
during  the  long  history  of  the  laboratory  where  is 
prepared  the  supreme  fusion  called  the  human  soul. 

"Respect  for  the  individual  of  the  human  species, 
and  adoration  of  the  intellectual  treasure  of  this  indi- 
vidual, ought  to  form  the  centre  of  all  knowledge,  of 
all  ideals.  It  is  only  in  venerating  the  human  being 
as  the  most  beautiful  creation  of  the  world ;  it  is  only 
in  understanding  the  beauty  and  the  indestructible 
grandeur  of  an  intelligence  illuminated  by  love  and 
knowledge,  that  the  education  of  the  young  generation 
will  bring  the  desired  fruits. 

"To  be  better  understood,  my  dear  Lillian,  I  turn 
to  comparison :  Suppose  any  one  had  devoted  his 
whole  life  with  enthusiasm  to  a  science,  which  capti- 
vated all  his  energy,  all  his  faculties ;  certainly  he 
would  remain  indifferent  (cold)  to  the  details  of  his 
own  existence,  having  his  mind  fixed  on  the  object 
of  his  studies.  A  subject  so  interesting,  so  dear  to  me 
that  I  could  scarcely  ever  detach  my  own  self  from 
the  existence  of  humanity  in  its  entirety,  or  from  that 
of  my  people  in  particular  —  did  I  have  time  or  de- 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    273 

sire  to  stop  and  think  about  myself,  or  the  particular- 
ities of  my  personal  life?  All  seem  to  me  transient, 
insignificant,  in  view  of  the  happiness  which,  sooner 
or  later,  must  be  the  fate  of  the  human  world.  I 
myself  have  never  experienced  any  disillusionment, 
for,  having  in  view  the  history  of  the  past  and  the 
present  of  our  race,  taking  into  consideration  the 
capacity  of  my  soul  to  love  without  ceasing,  and  to 
wish  to  go  on  instructing,  I  understand  that  the  tend- 
ency of  our  nature  towards  good  is  a  gift  inseparable 
from  the  character  of  man,  and  that  all  progress  de- 
pends only  upon  seeing  clearly,  acquired  by  experi- 
ence and  knowledge.  That  which  is  dear  to  me  above 
all  is  that,  notwithstanding  my  habit  of  living  rather 
in  an  abstract  world,  in  the  regions  of  my  imagination, 
I  have  in  no  way  lost  the  ardor  of  my  love  for  those 
near  me,  and  that  all  their  misfortunes  touch  me  much 
more  profoundly  than  my  own.  Probably  I  owe  this 
invaluable  gift  as  much  to  my  natural  capacity  as  to 
the  continual  practice  of  interesting  myself  in  the  fate 
of  those  by  whom  I  am  surrounded. 

"Lillian,  my  friend!  I  hope  to  be  understood  by 
you,  seeing  that  you  pass  your  life  in  the  same  way  that 
I  pass  mine.  It  is  not  your  personal  happiness  which 
has  been  the  object  of  your  care,  and  if  any  one  asked 
you  what  your  past  has  been,  you  would  have  to 
reply :  '  I  worked  for  the  happiness  of  others,  and  by 
that  means  I  forged  my  own."1 

To  June  Barrows  Mussey.     On  picture  card. 
November  4,  1913. 

"I  know  you  are  out  of  doors  every  day,  like  the 
little  girl  here,  who  is  enjoying  herself  with  her  parents 


274    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

in  a  charming  nook  of  a  Russian  forest.  But  I  fear 
the  cold,  and  my  pelisse  is  heavy,  so  I  cannot  walk 
long  or  far.  Sitting  in  my  room  I  read  many  Amer- 
ican papers  and  magazines,  and  then  I  think  of  our 
dearest  Nonna.  I  have  sent  her  book  to  a  place  where 
there  are  hundreds  of  our  people  that  will  profit  by 
studying  it." 

November  17-30,  1913. 

"She  (Mrs.  Barrows)  was  among  us  like  an  angel; 
and  so  she  has  passed  away  without  trouble,  never 
abusing  her  greatness  of  mind  and  feelings  towards 
the  masses  that  surrounded  her  with  all  their  imper- 
fections and  meanness.  She  was  above  the  world 
she  inhabited,  and,  understanding  the  weakness  which 
is  yet  familiar  to  the  population  of  the  earth,  not  only 
was  she  indulgent  to  it,  but  she  worked  her  life  long 
to  improve,  to  comfort,  to  uplift.  And  she  was 
beloved  for  her  golden  heart,  for  her  friendship,  for 
her  delicate  attention  to  the  needs  of  each  separate 
person.  She  was  fit  to  be  a  mother,  a  wife,  a  sister,  a 
friend;  she  never  wished  to  be  a  benefactress,  to  im- 
pose, to  be  looked  upon  as  an  imperative  being,  that 
ought  to  be  a  model  to  be  praised  and  marveled  at. 
She  was  a  good  and  wise  spirit,  that  came  to  us  to 
show  how  one  can  live  and  die,  always  ready  to  help 
and  to  improve.  And  now  that  people  say  she  is 
gone,  I  see  a  blue  star  watching  over  our  sorrowful 
heads,  and  pouring  upon  us  such  a  soft  and  delightful 
light  that  we  do  not  perceive  the  sadness  and  the 
darkness  that  surround  us,  for  our  hearts  aspire  to 
realize  the  light  everywhere,  to  fill  every  heart  with 
it.  This  desire  makes  us  better  and  stronger,  and  this 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    275 

interior  force  develops  the  light  of  our  own  hearts, 
which  in  its  turn  continues  the  work  begun  by  Isabel 
C.  Barrows,  and  will  never  fail  to  do  so,  for  the  source 
of  that  light  was  and  remains  inexhaustible. 

"A  person  who  is  not  devoid  of  sense  can  never 
become  a  pessimist  or  a  sceptic,  after  being  acquainted 
with  such  a  soul." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     November  20,  1913. 

"It  is  wonderful  and  beautiful,  such  a  friendship  as 
ours.  Two  souls  found  each  other,  and  were  bound 
by  a  sympathy  that  nothing  can  shake  or  disturb. 
What  happiness  to  be  sure  of  a  treasure  that  is  im- 
mortal!" 


CHAPTER  XVI 

EAGER  to  resume  her  work  for  the  revolution,  and 
urged  by  her  colleagues  to  rejoin  them,  Madame 
Breshkovsky  made  a  daring  attempt  to  escape,  which 
very  nearly  succeeded. 

George  Lazareff  to  Miss  Blackwell.    December  14, 

1913 

Clarens,  Switzerland. 

"Baboushka  is  captured! 

"The  account  printed  in  all  the  Russian  news- 
papers says  she  was  accustomed  to  take  her  dinner 
daily  at  the  house  of  her  comrade  exile  Vladimiroff. 
Six  spies,  two  at  a  time,  regularly  followed  her  to  and 
fro.  Across  the  road  from  her  house  a  sentry-box 
had  been  built  for  the  two  spies  who  kept  their  eyes 
upon  it  day  and  night.  On  November  18  (Old  Style) 
or  December  1,  she  went  out  as  usual  to  VladimirofTs 
to  dinner.  As  usual,  the  spies  followed  her.  But  in 
the  evening  one  of  the  exiles,  Andreeff,  dressed  in  her 
clothes,  came  back  to  her  house  in  company  with  some 
friends,  followed  by  the  spies.  The  latter  did  not 
perceive  the  trick.  Meanwhile  Baboushka  had  taken 
horses  that  were  ready,  and  started  away.  For  some 
days  the  spies  were  not  disturbed,  though  she  did  not 
go  out.  Her  dinner  was  sent  regularly  to  her  room, 

276 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OP  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    277 

as  had  happened  before  when  she  was  not  well.  Every 
night  the  light  was  shining  as  usual.1 

"On  November  21  (December  7)  it  was  discovered 
that  she  had  fled.  To  escape  she  would  have  had  to 
get  seven  or  eight  days'  start,  in  order  to  reach  Irkutsk 
on  horseback  (over  1000  kilometers).  Madness  fol- 
lowed. Telegrams  were  sent  to  the  Governor  of 
Irkutsk,  to  the  Minister  of  the  Interior  at  St.  Peters- 
burg. The  order  was  given  to  catch  her  at  all  costs. 
One  thousand  rubles  was  the  reward. 

"November  23  (December  6)  the  Governor  of  Ir- 
kutsk with  eight  gendarmes  and  fifty  policemen  started 
to  meet  her  and  intercept  her  on  the  way.  And,  to 
everybody's  astonishment,  they  met  her  only  seven 
miles  from  Irkutsk !  How  it  was  possible  I  cannot 
understand.  In  two  hours  more  she  would  have 
reached  a  safe  shelter  in  Irkutsk.  The  soldiers  met  a 
coach  with  a  passenger,  who  was  a  well-dressed  gentle- 
man. Unfortunately,  it  was  discovered  that  this 
gentleman  was  Baboushka,  who  was  immediately 
arrested  and  conveyed  to  the  Irkutsk  prison. 

"It  is  a  great  blow  to  all  her  friends.  But  her 
anxiety,  I  know,  is  not  for  herself,  but  for  others. 
She  bade  me  in  advance  do  my  utmost  to  console  you 
and  all  her  friends  if  the  attempt  was  unsuccessful. 

"I  think  the  failure  was  due  to  some  want  of  fore- 
sight. November  23  (the  very  day  of  her  arrest)  is 
her  birthday,  and  usually  she  received  by  post  some 
presents  which  required  her  personal  receipt.  Reg- 
istered letters  and  parcels  in  su^h  a  remote  place 
would  arrive  before  and  after  her  birthday.  She  knew 
all  this.  And  I  believe  she  found  the  circumstances 
especially  favorable  if  she  determined  to  disregard  it." 

1  See  Appendix. 


278    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

To  her  son  Nicholas.     Central  Prison,  Irkutsk,  Siberia. 
November  30-December  12,  1913. 

"  My  dear  Kola :  I  write  you  from  the  Irkutsk  prison, 
having  been  arrested  on  my  way  to  this  city.  The 
conditions  of  my  life  compelled  me  to  leave  the  town 
without  permission,  and  about  my  future  fate  I  know 
nothing.  I  have  written  my  lawyer  Prince  Eristoff  (of 
St.  Petersburg)  all  the  particulars  of  this  affair.  I  do  not 
know  whether  I  shall  be  allowed  to  receive  an  answer. 

"But,  as  I  know  all  my  friends  are  anxious  about  my 
health,  I  ask  you,  my  dear,  to  let  them  know  that  I 
am  quite  well,  and  for  the  rest  everything  is  all  right. 
I  have  everything  necessary,  and  have  money  enough 
in  hand. 

"I  have  begun  to  read  again,  but  I  am  sorry  I  have 
not  so  large  a  choice  of  reading  matter  as  I  had  before. 
I  kiss  and  bless  you  all. 

"  Your  Mamma,  Catherine  Breshkovsky." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     January  13-26,  1914. 

"I  have  been  notified  that  I  must  not  send  of  re- 
ceive any  letters  in  English,  because  none  of  the  police 
here  can  read  that  language.  So  I  will  try  to  write 
you  in  French  to  tell  you  that  my  health  is  still  the 
same,  and  that  neither  you  nor  my  other  friends  need 
have  any  fears  for  me. 

"During  my  last  months  at  Kirensk,  my  life  was 
as  disagreeable  as  it  is  here,  so  I  am  not  suffering  just 
now  any  more  than  I  did  there." 

For  this  attempt  to  escape,  she  was  kept  in  solitary 
confinement  at  Irkutsk  for  about  two  years,  and  then 
banished  to  the  far  north. 

Her  letters  from  Irkutsk  prison  continue  cheerful. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    279 

To  Ellen  Starr,  April  15-28,  1914. 

"There  is  nothing  more  beautiful  than  to  be  trusted 
by  our  neighbors,  to  know  that  nothing  can  change 
the  relations  established  between  them  and  us.  With 
this  certainty,  one  feels  strong,  rich,  superior  to  every 
misfortune. 

"I  look  upon  our  life  as  a  long  journey,  full  of  ob- 
stacles and  difficulties  of  every  kind.  The  traveler 
is  always  subject  to  the  risk  that  he  may  not  reach 
in  his  life-time  the  sacred  mountain  which  he  has 
chosen  for  his  goal.  But  when  once  he  is  sure  of  his 
choice,  and  of  the  approval  of  those  whom  he  respects, 
he  marches  on  till  his  last  breath,  without  growing 
discouraged.  Beautiful  Dame  History,  who  accepts 
us  as  her  companions,  does  not  show  us  the  general 
perspective  in  detail ;  all  we  can  ask  of  her  is  that  the 
direction  shall  be  true  for  the  whole  time  during  which 
the  life  of  humanity  is  to  last." 

Madame  Breshkovsky  once  said  to  me,  "My  life 
has  been  like  a  long  journey.  If  an  opportunity  of 
personal  happiness  came  to  me,  I  took  it  only  as  I 
might  pick  a  flower  by  the  way,  or  eat  a  bonbon." 

To  George  Lazareff.     May  12-25,  1914. 

"May  has  come  to  Irkutsk,  too.  The  Lena  River 
is  free  from  ice.  I  feel  that  the  boats  for  the  transpor- 
tation of  the  exiles  are  ready  for  their  work.  I  expect 
any  minute  to  hear:  'Be  ready!  get  up!'  And,  as 
before  starting  for  the  other  world,  I  want  to  say : 
'  Good  bye !  good  bye ! '  to  all  my  friends,  to  all  my 
dearest :  'Till  a  new  place !'  I  do  not  fear  the  coming 
journey.  Lately  the  good  people  in  Irkutsk  and  ia 


280    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

Russia  have  nourished  me  abundantly,  so  as  to  make 
me  gain  not  only  in  strength  but  in  fat  also.  The  cold 
winds  of  the  Lena  River  do  not  frighten  me  any  more. 
I  have  cakes,  sweets  of  every  kind ;  bird's  milk  alone 
is  lacking.  But  I  hope  to  get  that  when  I  reach  the 
fabulous  '  Isle  of  Bouyan,  that  lies  in  the  Ocean '  [expres- 
sion from  a  Russian  tale].  Oh,  there  are  many  birds 
there,  the  penguins  and  others !  I  hope  to  renew  all 
my  correspondence  with  my  friends.  Be  sure  that 
from  every  possible  'Isle  of  Bouyan'  on  the  coming 
journey  I  shall  try  to  write  you.  How  glad  I  am ! 
How  many  cakes  I  have !  I  am  sorry  I  cannot  treat 
you  all.  Do  not  forget  me.  The  only  food  I  need  is 
good  spirit. 

"Yours  forever,  Kitty." 

A  series  of  postcards  brought  loving  messages  to 
her  friends,  and  said  that  she  kept  well.  She  spoke  of 
receiving  "a  shower  of  cards"  from  America.  Mr. 
Lazareff  reported  that  she  often  wrote  letters  to  him 
in  Russian  verses,  and  that  he  wondered  at  her  talent. 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     June  8,  1914. 

"Tulips,  daffodils  and  other  spring  flowers  rejoice 
my  solitude  and  carry  my  thoughts  to  you.  I  shall 
be  forced  to  spend  the  coming  year  alone,  as  I  have 
the  past  six  months.  The  lack  of  human  society  is 
hard  for  me  to  bear,  certainly,  but  perhaps  my  health 
will  not  suffer  from  it  as  much  as  my  spirits. 

"Mabel  has  done  me  a  great  service  in  sending  me 
the  Book  of  Hymns.  I  am  copying  them  out  in  order 
not  to  forget  the  English  language,  and  I  am  studying 
them  in  order  to  see  better  how  deeply  the  human 
heart  is  penetrated  with  ideal  sentiments. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OP  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    281 

"I  think  that  poetry,  history,  and  even  a  magazine 
(of  last  year)  might  be  sent  to  me  in  English." 

May  13-26,  1914. 

"In  a  few  days  the  first  party  of  convicts  will  start 
for  the  north.  Whether  I  am  to  go  with  it  or  not 
they  do  not  tell  me.  The  summer  is  short  here,  but 
it  rejuvenates  me  all  the  same,  and  if  I  can  spend  it 
in  the  open  air,  I  shall  be  ready  to  meet  the  winter, 
however  severe." 

August  4-17,  1914. 

"Remember  me  to  all  our  mutual  friends.  Tell 
them  I  am  bearing  my  hard  lot  bravely,  and  that  if 
my  physical  strength  should  some  day  forsake  me,  it 
will  not  be  the  fault  of  my  soul,  which  remains  always 
calm,  accustomed  as  it  is  to  be  surprised  at  nothing." 

September  17-30,  1914. 

"I  am  reading  with  great  pleasure  Dickens's  'A 
Child's  History  of  England,'  a  gift  from  over  the  sea, 
sent  in  such  stormy  weather  ! 

"Words  freeze  on  the  lips,  the  imagination  refuses 
to  picture  the  excesses  with  which  the  history  of  our 
days  is  filled.  Without  being  resigned,  one  can  only 
stand  open-mouthed,  as  if  struck  by  thunder.  Never- 
theless, in  spite  of  all  the  countless  misfortunes  that 
accompany  universal  war,  my  heart,  all  bruised  though 
it  is,  does  not  foresee  a  bad  end  for  humanity.  I  have 
great  hope  that  the  minds  as  well  as  the  hearts  of  our 
world  will  be  purified  and  enlightened,  after  passing 
through  such  sinister  trials. 

"Already  for  many  years  the  wisest  and  noblest 
voices  have  declared  against  all  wars  between  the 


282    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

nations,  and  have  foretold  that  militarism,  when  it 
has  attained  its  highest  point,  must  end  by  anni- 
hilating itself.  And  the  sentiment  of  indignation 
which  is  invading  all  minds  against  the  insolence  of 
Germany  proves  that  the  people  are  for  culture  and 
not  for  destruction.  The  evil  is  horrible,  for  its  depth 
as  well  as  its  intensity;  but  better  days  will  come. 

"All  these  years  we  have  been  losing  the  noblest 
hearts.  Felix  [Volkhovsky]  is  no  more;  brother 
Egor  [Lazareff]  feels  weak,  wearied  with  crushing  toil, 
which  has  been  his  lot  all  his  life.  I  feel  well,  despite 
the  bars;  and  when  weather  permits,  I  go  out  for  a 
few  minutes  to  take  the  air  and  get  the  numbness  out 
of  my  feet. 

"I  have  just  read  'De  Profundis,'  by  Oscar  Wilde; 
and  what  an  immense  difference  I  find  between  his 
psychology  and  mine !  How  much  to  be  pitied  are 
people  who  have  never  known  the  solidarity  of  human 
hearts  and  souls ! 

"I  need  postcards  for  children,  and  nobody  sends 
me  any.  Into  my  letters  to  grown  people  I  often  slip 
pictures,  which  delight  the  little  ones. 

"In  eight  months  I  expect  to  be  out  of  prison." 

November  5-18,  1914. 

"My  health  does  not  grow  worse,  and  I  believe  that 
I  shall  get  through  the  winter  fairly  well.  I  am  be- 
coming more  and  more  prudent,  for  I  would  not  for 
anything  in  the  world  disappoint  my  friends'  hopes  of 
seeing  me  safe  and  sound  next  spring. 

"I  often  transport  myself  to  Hull  House,  to  greet  its 
residents.  The  face  of  each  of  them  lives  in  my  remem- 
brance, I  must  tell  you  that  literature  never  leaves  so 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    283 

strong  an  impression  upon  me  as  human  presences; 
and  I  have  never  in  my  life  quoted  a  phrase  from  any 
writer,  while  the  words,  the  expressions,  and  the 
actions  of  human  beings  imprint  themselves  so  deeply 
on  my  mind  that  they  remain  engraved  there  forever. 
It  is  because  humanity  is  my  passion ;  and  the  women 
are  my  hope  of  seeing  it  some  day  perfected. 

"This  winter  I  have  reading  matter  enough,  which 
ensures  me  against  ennui,  the  more  as  the  prisoners 
are  allowed  to  read  the  cablegrams  about  the  war, 
which,  in  turn,  give  rise  to  thought  and  meditation 
on  many  subjects." 

To  Miss  Dudley.     January  17-30,  1915. 

"Oh,  how  fortunate  one  is  to  have  friends!  There 
is  a  Russian  proverb  (very  old)  which  says :  *  Don't 
have  a  hundred  rubles,  but  have  a  hundred  friends.' 
In  Russian  it  is  in  rhyme.  That  was  said  in  times 
when  rubles  were  very  rare,  and  every  ruble  was  con- 
sidered a  fortune.  Now  friends  are  looked  upon  as  an 
invaluable  gift,  for  each  of  them  takes  the  place  of 
thousands  of  rubles  for  an  intelligent  being.  I  always 
realize  the  truth  of  this  proverb,  for,  having  nothing 
of  my  own,  I  am  provided  with  all  necessities,  even 
with  luxuries.  What  would  have  become  of  me  with- 
out all  these  kindnesses  that  the  good  Lord  sends  me ! 

"In  four  months  I  think  I  shall  be  sent  to  the  north 
surely. 

"Arthur  Bullard  is  doubly  close  to  me  for  having 
seen  Russia,  the  Russian  peasant,  and  for  having  car- 
ried away  with  him  a  souvenir  which  will  make  him 
always  a  friend  of  our  country,  entirely  disorganized 
though  it  may  be.  I  do  not  like  to  assure  the  world  of 


284    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

the  strength  inherent  in  our  people;  it  ought  to  be 
proved  before  speaking  of  it ;  but  for  myself,  I  believe 
in  it  with  all  the  fervor  of  a  soul  that  feels  itself  close 
to  the  soul  of  its  people.  Already  the  last  ten  years 
show  the  gigantic  progress  that  is  being  made  in  the 
very  entrails  of  our  country.  May  the  good  God  bless 
us  all !  And  He  will  do  it,  since  our  spirit  aspires  to 
the  good  of  all." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     January  17-30,  1915. 

"The  victory  (of  woman  suffrage)  in  Nevada  and 
Montana  is  another  proof  of  what  well-directed  energy 
can  do;  and  it  is  for  you,  my  daughter,  to  rejoice  in 
it  with  pride  —  you  who  have  followed  so  perfectly 
the  course  begun  by  your  mother,  who  by  her  whole 
life  proved  the  worth  of  a  woman  at  the  height  of 
moral  power.  Honor  to  the  American  woman,  since  she 
leads  her  neighbors  to  the  regions  of  a  pure  and  noble 
life  !  Very  certainly,  the  women  of  other  countries  will 
not  delay  to  follow  her,  and  the  world  will  be  rid  of 
these  horrible  cataclysms,  which  destroy  in  a  moment 
all  that  humanity  has  worked  at  for  centuries. 

"Brother  George  writes  me  long  letters  full  of 
painful  interest ;  but  I  feel  that  nothing  can  turn  aside 
the  movement  of  history  toward  a  beautiful  summer 
day.  Is  it  not  so  ? 

"I  want  for  nothing;  my  friends  are  untiringly 
kind,  and  I  have  ended  by  being  ashamed  of  all  the 
delicacies  with  which  they  surround  me. 

"The  American  postcards  for  children  are  often  very 
comical.  They  furnish  me  themes  for  fables  in  verse 
which  I  compose  for  the  little  ones,  and  which  make 
me  laugh  myself." 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    285 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     March  10,  1915. 

"I  have  'Pioneer  Work  for  Women',  by  Doctor 
Elizabeth  Blackwell.  I  have  read  a  few  pages,  and 
like  it  so  much  that  I  am  saving  it  to  read  in  case  I 
should  be  sent  into  distant  and  solitary  exile. 

"I  am  suffering  from  the  cold,  and  find  it  hard  to 
breathe,  but  I  hope  to  regain  strength  when  out  of 
prison." 

George  Lazareff  to  Miss  Blackwell.     March  18,  1915. 

"I  have  just  received  a  long  letter  from  Baboushka. 
She  has  entered  upon  her  seventy-second  year.  She 
says  she  has  decided  to  make  a  *  truck '  with  the  Parcse 
(the  Fates).  She  has  determined  to  throw  off  the 
seventy  years  of  her  life,  and  to  begin  her  new  era 
with  her  seventy  years'  jubilee.  She  is  now  to  be 
about  two  years  old.  She  says  that  perhaps  the  Fates 
will  not  perceive  this  'truck',  and  will  continue  to  spin 
her  thread  of  life." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     April  2-15,  1915. 

"The  news  that  Miss  Katherine  B.  Davis  has  been 
appointed  superintendent  of  prisons  is  a  great  piece 
of  good  fortune  in  my  eyes.  It  is  high  time  that  women 
should  begin  to  have  charge  of  the  institutions  that 
regulate  the  lives  and  fates  of  so  many  unfortunates. 
All  the  educational  establishments  for  young  people 
ought  to  be  confided  to  them  also. 

"I  am  glad  that  alcohol  has  been  suppressed  in 
Russia,  and  I  wish  it  may  remain  so  forever.  The  war 
is  going  to  open  people's  eyes  to  many  defects,  and  this 
will  be  a  stimulus  to  the  population,  and  will  compel 
it  to  regulate  its  living  conditions  better." 


286    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER   OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

To  Miss  Blackwell.    May  3,  1915. 

"To-day  I  got  the  letter  in  which  you  speak  of  some 
day  having  the  story  of  my  life.  Dear  child,  I  tell 
you  seriously  that  I  do  not  know  my  own  history. 
I  have  not  felt  it.  It  was  always  my  soul  that  was  in 
action,  and  the  direction  taken  by  it  from  my  child- 
hood has  never  changed,  so  that  its  history  would  be 
monotonous.  The  details  of  my  material  life  inter- 
ested me  so  little  that  I  do  not  remember  them  clearly, 
and  every  time  that  it  happens  to  me  to  read  the  mem- 
oirs of  my  old  comrades,  I  am  always  surprised  at 
what  they  say  about  me.  It  makes  me  smile.  I  have 
to  make  an  effort  of  memory  to  recall  the  past,  so  far 
as  it  concerns  myself.  The  only  thing  I  can  say  with 
certainty  about  myself  is  that  all  my  life  I  have  wanted 
to  be  good  and  worthy,  and  that  up  to  this  moment  I 
am  correcting  my  faults  and  imperfections.  In  regard 
to  others,  it  is  their  moral  inclination,  their  psychology, 
which  are  the  object  of  my  observations,  rather  than 
anything  else.  Also  I  must  say  that  it  was  always 
the  future  that  especially  preoccupied  me.  The  past 
and  the  present  touch  me  in  so  far  as  they  lead 
up  to,  in  so  far  as  they  give  hope  of  such  or  such  a 
degree  of  perfectionment  of  human  life.  The  progress 
of  my  people  —  I  think  of  it  continually.  I  follow 
with  eager  interest  the  progress  of  other  countries, 
knowing  how  interdependent  they  are.  I  am  always 
absorbed  in  my  ideas." 

To  Miss  Blackwell. 

"This  is  May  12.  On  May  13-18  I  shall  set  out, 
probably  for  Kirensk.  It  is  much  better  than  to  pass 
the  summer  in  prison,  where  one  feels  the  lack  of  air. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    287 

Just  think,  my  friends  have  insisted  upon  my  letting 
my  mouth  be  filled  with  artificial  teeth,  which  has 
already  been  done,  and  very  skilfully,  thanks  to  an 
able  and  attentive  dentist.  Now  it  is  my  eyes,  which 
have  served  me  so  well  hitherto,  that  are  in  need  of 
repair,  since  I  am  getting  cataract  on  both.  The 
doctor  says  that  they  can  be  operated  on  in  six  months. 
It  is  growing  hard  for  me  to  read,  but  I  am  sure  of 
finding  people  to  read  to  me  as  soon  as  I  am  reunited 
to  my  comrades.  I  can  still  sew  for  hours  together, 
when  the  material  is  light-colored.  The  operation  cer- 
tainly could  not  be  performed  at  Kirensk,  but  they  may 
let  me  come  to  Irkutsk  to  have  it  done.  At  any  rate, 
I  am  already  accustomed  to  the  idea  of  much  privation, 
and  my  soul  is  ready  to  encounter  anything.  This 
must  be  enough  to  keep  you  from  making  a  great  outcry 
over  my  fate,  which  seems  to  me  always  an  enviable  one. 
Provided  you  keep  well,  I  am  sure  to  be  cheerful." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     May  22-June  2,  1915. 

"I  write  to  you  still  in  front  of  my  iron  table  and 
on  my  iron  stool.  How  many  days  will  pass  before  I 
leave  them  ?  They  promise  to  apply  to  me  —  to  me 
also  —  the  new  order  which  permits  the  exiles,  after 
six  months'  residence  in  the  place  appointed  by  the 
government,  to  choose  the  place  that  suits  them  best, 
with  the  exception  of  the  capital  city.  In  my  case  it 
is  Irkutsk  that  would  be  forbidden,  but  all  the  small 
cities  would  be  open  to  me.  The  nearest  one  to  Irkutsk 
is  Balagansk,  and  that  is  where  I  am  asking  to  be 
sent,  since  my  health  would  be  better  protected.  In 
case  of  serious  illness,  I  should  be  only  one  hundred 
versts  from  the  best  medical  help." 


288    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

To  Miss  Dudley.     May  12-25,  1915. 

"From  patriotism  as  well  as  from  indignation  against 
the  ferocity  of  the  Germans,  I  am  hoping  for  the  vic- 
tory of  the  Allies.  And  then  the  whole  world  would 
be  gainers,  by  getting  back  to  a  state  of  peace,  and  being 
able  to  continue  its  work  of  culture.  Our  great  coun- 
try needs  it  badly." 

June  2-15,  1915. 

"Alas,  the  summer  is  passing,  but  I  do  not  move. 
I  am  still  ignorant  as  to  what  is  to  become  of  me. 

"Thank  heaven,  after  a  month  of  terrible  efforts, 
the  war  is  resuming  its  normal  course,  and  the  hope  of 
seeing  it  ended  to  the  advantage  of  progress  in  general, 
strengthens  the  soul  and  makes  one  forget  personal 
misfortunes." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     June  14-27,  1915. 

"Now  I  can  tell  you  what  my  address  is  to  be: 
Yakutsk,  Asia.  My  friends'  efforts  to  have  me  al- 
lowed to  live  in  a  more  southerly  place  have  failed, 
and  I  shall  be  two  thousand  versts  further  north  than 
in  Kirensk.  It  does  not  much  surprise  me ;  and  then, 
as  I  told  you  before,  life  at  Kirensk  was  full  of  constant 
and  intolerable  persecutions ;  so  that  no  change  could 
affright  me.  I  am  only  sorry  for  my  two  extra  months 
of  prison,  during  our  short  summer;  for  the  convoy 
will  not  start  till  July. 

"The  cold  at  Yakutsk  rises  above  55°;  the  winter 
lasts  eight  months ;  there  is  no  spring,  for  the  ground 
is  still  covered  with  snow  in  May,  and  in  August 
the  nights  are  freezing.  The  two  months  of  summer 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    289 

are  sometimes  very  hot,  and  make  it  possible  to  grow 
a  few  vegetables. 

"But,  as  it  is  the  capital  of  the  province  of  Yakutsk, 
which  stretches  for  thousands  of  versts  in  every  direc- 
tion, there  are  some  doctors  there,  and  more  people 
than  in  Kirensk.  There  are  some  political  exiles, 
too,  so  you  may  be  easy  about  me.  I  shall  try  not  to 
lose  what  is  left  of  my  health,  and  it  is  not  impossible, 
thanks  to  the  care  you  all  take  of  me. 

"The  longer  I  live,  the  more  I  realize  that  the  foun- 
dation of  my  being  is  an  ardent  and  invincible  love  for 
the  human  race,  which,  as  I  believe,  has  in  itself  all 
the  germs  of  an  endless  intellectual  'perfectionment', 
an  ascent  to  a  moral  life  that  will  make  it  infinitely 
happy.  This  habit  of  living  in  human  life  as  a  whole 
has  made  me  so  associate  myself  with  the  universal 
psychology  that  I  lose  myself  in  it,  and  care  little 
about  my  individual  fate,  which  is  not  dear  to  me, 
once  it  is  separated  from  the  general  course." 

A  political  exile  in  Irkutsk  saw  Baboushka,  at  the 
moment  of  her  setting  off  for  Yakutsk.  He  wrote : 

"She  has  become  a  little  deaf;  her  shaggy  hair  is 
snow-white;  but  spiritually  she  is  as  strong  as  ever. 
On  seeing  her,  at  the  first  moment,  I  could  not  keep 
from  weeping,  hiding  my  face  on  her  breast.  'Look 
up,  let  me  see  what  is  the  matter  with  you,  rascal !  * 
she  said.  'I  don't  like  to  see  sad  faces  of  my  little 
children.  Cheer  up,  my  boy,  and  speak  loud,  like  a 
good  officer  at  the  front.  I  am  a  little  deaf.'  I  looked 
at  her ;  her  motherly  mild  eyes  were  full  of  tears ;  she 
was  smiling.  I  was  not  able  to  utter  a  word.  The 
other  boys  and  girls  were  awaiting  their  turn." 


290    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

To  Miss  Blackwell.    Yakutsk,  August  1-13,  1915. 

"For  two  weeks  I  have  been  taking  walks  around 
the  town  of  Yakutsk,  visiting  groves  and  meadows. 
I  am  happy  to  breathe  a  fresh  air,  very  pure  here,  in 
the  large  deserts.  It  is  cold  enough,  but  cheering  to 
the  organism,  eager  for  oxygen  and  ozone.  I  feel 
much  better." 

It  was  reported  that  Madame  Breshkovsky  would 
not  be  allowed  to  stay  at  Yakutsk,  but  would  be  sent 
still  farther  north,  to  Bulun,  a  tiny  group  of  native 
huts,  under  the  Arctic  circle.  Strong  protests  against 
her  banishment  to  Yakutsk  appeared  in  the  American 
press,  and  a  petition  to  the  Russian  government  was 
started.  Suddenly  she  was  notified  that  she  might 
return  to  Irkutsk.  The  winter  was  closing  in,  and 
it  was  not  certain  that  she  could  get  through,  but  she 
started  immediately. 

George  Lazareff  to  Miss  Dudley.     November  15,  1915. 

"Yesterday  I  received  a  new  letter  from  Baboushka, 
written  on  the  eve  of  her  departure  from  Yakutsk. 
She  had  been  glad  and  surprised  when  the  authorities 
declared  that  she  would  not  be  sent  further  north, 
but  she  had  not  suspected  that  there  was  a  possi- 
bility of  her  being  allowed  to  return  south.  All  the 
attempts  made  by  many  Socialist  members  of  the 
Douma  to  get  the  government  to  leave  her  in  the 
south  of  Siberia  had  been  unsuccessful.  So  it  was  a 
surprise  to  everyone  when  she  was  unexpectedly  al- 
lowed to  turn  back,  after  a  tedious  journey  of  three 
thousand  miles. 

"I  cannot  find  any  reasonable  explanation  of  this 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    291 

turn  of  affairs,  except  the  impression  made  on  the 
government  by  Mr.  Lewis  Herreshoff  s  letter,  which 
I  forwarded  to  Baboushka,  and  which  was  intercepted 
by  the  government,  about  the  intention  of  the  Ameri- 
can friends  to  get  up  a  petition  in  Baboushka's  behalf. 
I  believe  the  government  resolved  to  let  her  come  back 
to  the  south  as  though  by  their  own  will,  and  thus  to 
prevent  any  agitation  in  America. 

"  In  an  earlier  letter  she  had  written : 

"I  have  been  introduced  into  a  good  colony  of  the 
hearty  men  and  women,  the  political  exiles,  a  large 
number  of  whom  have  been  sent  here  after  spending 
many  years  at  hard  labor.  They  have  married  here, 
and  have  children.  The  destitution  is  great.  My 
baggage  has  not  arrived.  I  have  no  warm  clothes, 
no  money,  and  I  am  indebted  to  my  friends  of  the 
colony.  They  are  so  kind,  and  touchingly  attentive 
to  me.  A  young  man,  after  his  work  in  some  office, 
comes  daily  to  me  and  Mrs.  Lydia  Yezersky,  an  old 
friend  of  mine,  and  spends  the  rest  of  the  day  in  tak- 
ing care  of  us  both.  In  her  youth  Mrs.  Yezersky  was 
a  good  pianist.  After  so  many  long  and  hard  adven- 
tures, she  found  herself  in  Yakutsk,  and  somehow 
procured  a  piano,  and  now  I  really  enjoy  her  playing. 
.  .  .  The  touching  care  of  my  comrades  gives  me 
great  concern;  they  are  so  poor,  trying  to  earn  their 
livelihood  by  all  sorts  of  hard  work.  The  war  has  an 
awful  effect,  living  is  dear,  the  products  are  rare; 
communication  with  Russia  is  long  and  difficult.  Many 
of  the  exiles  have  lost  their  friends  and  relatives,  who 
can  no  longer  support  the  poor  exiles.  Everything  is 
disorganized  in  Russia.  At  the  first  opportunity  send 
me  all  the  help  you  possibly  can.'" 


292    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

She  went  up  the  Lena  on  the  last  boat  of  the  season, 
until  the  floating  ice  stopped  navigation.  She  was 
halted  at  the  little  hamlet  of  Vitim. 

To  Miss  Blackwell.    Vitim,  a  little  port  on  the  Lena 
River.     October  1-13,  1915. 

"Amidst  the  ice  of  the  Lena,  2000  miles  from  Yakutsk 
and  1400  miles  from  Irkutsk,  waiting  a  practicable  way 
to  continue  my  travel,  in  a  little  home  of  my  good 
friends  I  sit  before  a  little  table  to  inform  you,  my  faith- 
ful friends  in  America,  that  there  is  no  weather,  no 
difficulty  strong  enough  to  crumble  my  health  to 
pieces,  to  kill  me  to  the  ground.  In  a  month  there 
will  be  thick  ice  covering  the  Lena,  and  by  that  time 
I  hope  to  find  a  companion  with  whom  I  shall  reach 
Irkutsk.'* 

To  Miss  Blackwell.    Irkutsk,  December  14-27,  1915. 

"For  two  weeks  I  have  been  in  Irkutsk,  in  the  house 
of  my  excellent  friends,  surrounded  by  the  most  careful 
attention.  I  have  now  the  opportunity  to  regain  my 
health  somewhat,  for  here  we  have  many  skilful  doctors. 
But  (there  is  always  a  but  in  our  country)  the  govern- 
ment of  the  town  has  encircled  me  with  such  a  regime 
that  I  cannot  make  a  step  alone,  but  every  minute 
when  out  of  doors  am  persecuted  by  a  row  of  police- 
men, and  one  of  them  enters  the  house  and  even  the 
apartment  where  I  am  staying,  at  home  or  anywhere 
else.  Quite  a  prison  regime.  Such  a  state  of  things  is 
little  comfortable,  yet  I  do  not  wonder,  and  will  wait 
further. 

"It  is  not  difficult  to  wait,  having  so  excellent 
moments  in  life  as  are  part  of  my  existence.  Here  I 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    293 

have  received  a  large  packet  of  letters  and  papers  from 
America. 

"Do  not  be  sorry  for  my  eyes.  The  four  months 
that  I  spent  out  of  doors,  during  the  summer,  were  the 
best  remedy  I  could  have  had.  You  see,  I  can  write, 
and  read  all  I  get  from  you.  I  read  books  too,  but 
little,  for  I  have  comrades  ready  to  help  me.  The 
oculist  says  my  eyes  will  serve  me  long  enough  if 
they  are  carefully  used,  and  many  years  will  pass  be- 
fore the  cataracts  are  ripe.  I  am  safe  but  for  the 
persecution. 

"Irkutsk  is  not  a  large  town,  only  150,000  inhabit- 
ants; yet,  being  the  capital  of  Eastern  Siberia,  it  is 
the  centre  of  the  intelligent  forces  of  the  country,  and 
has  many  institutions  of  culture  of  various  kinds.  For 
my  part,  I  am  separated  from  people  and  institutions. 

"How  glad  I  am  you  are  in  communication  with  my 
brother  [George  Lazareff].  He  helps  me  with  money, 
and  I  pray  God  to  secure  him  and  his  friends  full  safety ; 
especially  now,  when  everyone  is  laboring  hard  for  the 
sake  of  millions  of  desolated  people,  deprived  of  all  that 
is  necessary  for  human  life.  The  fugitives  from  all  the 
frontiers  encumber  even  the  towns  of  Siberia,  and 
provisions  are  growing  dearer  every  day.  It  is  the 
time  when  all  the  good  elements  and  all  the  worse  are 
working  under  a  full  head  of  steam.  This  war  will  be 
the  proving  stone  of  the  capacities  of  all  humanity, 
and  especially  of  those  of  the  cultured  people  and  coun- 
tries. A  great  show  of  the  world's  progress. 

January  6-19,  1916. 

"It  has  been  my  turn  to  be  ill,  ten  days  lying  in  bed 
and  suffering  seriously.  But  the  efforts  of  my  friends 


294    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

and  a  set  of  good  scientists  of  medicine  have  worked 
real  miracles.  I  now  feel  strong  enough  to  read  and 
write,  and  walk  about  the  house,  keeping  a  rigid  regime. 
It  was  an  inflammation  of  the  liver,  kidneys,  stomach 
and  bowels,  followed  by  a  pefsistent  fever.  The 
weather  is  awful.  Notwithstanding  the  frost  of  40°, 
it  is  only  to-day  that  the  beautiful  Angora  river  has 
been  frozen.  Until  now  its  streaming  waves  have 
filled  the  town  with  unwholesome  vapors.  Every 
nook  in  Siberia  has  its  own  poison.  I  am  too  sensitive 
to  the  cold.  Yet  there  is  no  danger  now.  Your  dear 
letters  reach  me,  those  of  others,  too,  and  I  am  happy." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     February  9-22,  1916. 

"You  say  that  the  women  of  the  Westover  School l 
mean  to  send  me  $50.00  a  month.  It  will  be  a  great 
relief,  and  my  gratitude  will  be  profound.  You  wrote 
me  once  that  many  persons  said :  *  She  would  receive 
much  more  help  if  she  used  the  money  for  her  own 
needs,  but  she  gives  it  all  away.' 

"I  think  that  if  my  sharing  with  the  poor  makes  me 
happy,  that  is  all  any  one  can  contribute  to  my  welfare. 
I  am  not  only  happy  when  mending  the  naked  needs  of 
my  comrades,  but  am  seriously  unhappy  when,  knowing 
those  needs,  I  am  not  able  to  help.  So  every  ruble, 
every  dollar,  is  a  joy,  a  hope,  a  possibility  of  rendering 
a  service  to  those  who  lack  the  bare  necessaries  of  life. 
Even  when  a  prey  to  fierce  inflammations,  I  never  for- 
get my  obligations  towards  those  to  whom  I  have 
promised  my  help,  and  I  cannot  rest  till  my  waiting 
comrades  are  provided  for  as  arranged." 

*At  Middlebury,  Connecticut. 


(Undated) 

"Knowing  well  the  conditions  in  which  I  live,  I 
destroy  not  only  addresses,  but  even  letters  from 
relatives  and  friends,  every  time  lamenting  these 
sacrifices.  Long  experience  has  taught  me  to  expect 
unfortunate  occurrences  where  there  is  no  reason  for 
them  whatever.  Once  I  wrote  to  an  old  woman  friend 
of  mine  asking  her  to  send  pumpkin  seeds,  which  doctors 
say  are  a  good  remedy  for  tape- worms,  which  abound 
on  the  shores  of  the  Lena  and  the  Baikal.  Owing  to 
her  correspondence  with  me,  a  search  was  made  at  the 
old  woman's,  and  the  gendarmes  decided  that  'tape- 
worms' meant  *  gendarmes',  and  *  pumpkin  seeds', 
*  explosive  substances.'  The  old  woman  was  sentenced 
to  exile,  and  only  after  long  and  urgent  solicitations 
and  explanations  was  the  'penalty'  reduced  to  two 
years'  police  surveillance. 

"There  have  been  many  such  cases.  I  do  not  begin 
a  correspondence  with  anybody,  do  not  become  ac- 
quainted with  anybody,  knowing  beforehand  that  it 
will  do  people  no  good. 

"My  whole  present  life,  much  like  imprisonment,  is 
a  conclusive  proof  of  how  zealously  the  police  are  trying 
to  compromise  me  and  those  coming  in  contact  with 
me.  It  is  not  enough  that  a  number  of  policemen  and 
gendarmes  are  on  guard,  day  and  night,  in  the  yard 
of  the  house  where  I  live,  examining  and  frightening 
with  their  electric  lamps  all  who  come  and  go  in  the 
evening  (in  the  city  people  are  free  only  in  the  evening 
—  all  are  working) ;  but  in  addition  the  police  captain 
forces  his  way  into  the  house  at  any  time  of  day  or 
night,  to  convince  himself  that  I  am  here.  Neither 


296    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

my  illness  nor  the  presence  of  doctors  and  nurses  pre- 
vented him  from  'verifying'  me  in  bed. 

"Once  I  said  to  him :  'You  won't  even  let  one  die  in 
peace,'  but  that  did  not  keep  him  from  breaking  into 
the  house  at  three  A.M.,  when  the  policeman  had  reported 
that  at  two  o'clock  a  woman  had  left  this  house  for  the 
maternity  hospital. 

"A  soldier  is  in  the  habit  of  visiting  my  landlord's 
cook.  A  few  days  ago  three  of  us  were  sitting  in  the 
evening,  waiting  for  the  samovar,  but  it  did  not  come. 
It  was  already  ten  o'clock,  half-past  ten,  and  the 
samovar  did  not  arrive.  The  kitchen  here  is  across  the 
hall,  and  our  landlady  went  to  find  out  what  prevented 
us  from  having  tea.  Policemen  and  gendarmes  were 
searching  the  kitchen,  and  right  there  were  the  cook 
and  the  unfortunate  soldier.  That  was  a  search ! 
They  had  not  even  thought  of  notifying  the  landlord. 
The  cook  was  wanted  at  the  police  office.  There  she  was 
questioned,  reports  were  made  out,  and  all  the  cook's 
love  correspondence  was  retained,  to  examine  into  its 
meaning.  Owing  to  my  indisposition  and  my  dislike 
for  kitchen  odors,  I  have  not  been  in  the  kitchen  since 
my  arrival,  and  have  not  seen  the  soldier  a  single  time. 
The  policemen,  who  are  always  peeping  in  at  the 
windows,  particularly  the  cook's,  know,  of  course,  that 
I  should  neither  see  her  guests  nor  speak  with  them; 
but  if  I  had  been  in  the  kitchen  at  the  time  of  the 
soldier's  visit,  what  would  have  come  of  it?  The 
police  are  obliged  to  bring  information,  even  if  they 
have  to  suck  it  out  of  their  thumbs." 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    297 

To  Miss  Dudley.     March  19-31,  1916. 

"Please  do  not  send  any  petition  on  my  account.  In 
the  first  place,  it  will  be  of  no  use,  and  in  the  second, 
I  am  against  such  matters." 

To  Ellen  Starr,  with  a  picture  card  of  a  peasant  woman. 

(Undated) 

"Nothing  is  so  wonderfully  majestic  as  a  good  sample 
of  a  peasant  woman.  She  is  robust,  benevolent  and 
condescending.  Conscious  of  her  vivid  strength,  she 
works  and  surveys  like  an  energetic  queen,  fearing 
nothing,  and  acting  for  ten  persons  at  once.  All  her 
dozen  children  do  not  embarrass  her.  Every  one  gets 
his  place,  his  occupation,  and  she  rules  the  house  just 
by  words  and  smiles.  Such  women  are  the  benefit  of 
every  people,  and  the  blessing  of  the  world. 

"Do  not  confuse  the  true  Russians  with  others  who 
belong  to  the  Russian  empire.  The  psychology  of  our 
people  differs  not  only  from  that  of  other  races,  but  even 
from  that  of  other  Slavonic  tribes,  such  as  Poles,  Czechs, 
Bulgarians,  etc.  Our  Russian  women  are  not  only 
brave,  but  endowed  with  a  delicious  tenderness  of  heart, 
and  both  these  qualities  make  them  unselfish,  ready  to 
help,  and  to  take  upon  their  shoulders  every  hard  work. 

"In  general,  I  think  women  are  the  finest  part  of 
humanity.  I  respect  and  love  them  best  of  everything 
in  the  world.  Almost  all  my  correspondents  are 
women ;  only  the  poor  boys  have  the  privilege  of  being 
answered  richly,  for  they  are  little  children,  and  ought 
to  grow  big  men." 

In  a  very  grateful  letter  to  the  young  women  of  the 
Westover  School  she  wrote  (April  22,  1916):  "No 


298    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

vocation  is  so  needed,  so  beneficent  for  the  present  and 
so  fruitful  for  the  future,  as  the  rational  and  moral 
education  of  children." 

In  May  she  was  transferred  to  the  little  city  of 
Minussinsk  in  Eniseisk,  about  a  hundred  miles  from 
the  frontier  of  China.  She  was  not  sorry  to  have  a 
change.  "I  always  remember  the  saying  of  our  peas- 
ants," she  wrote,  "'If  worse,  yet  different.'"  In 
Minussinsk  the  climate  was  warmer.  She  enjoyed 
much  more  freedom,  and  her  health  improved. 
"  Really,  my  nature  is  like  that  of  a  wild  man.  Steppes, 
forests,  air,  river,  sky,  are  the  region  where  I  grow 
young  and  strong.  Without  space  I  feel  like  a  bird  in 
a  cage."  She  found  herself  in  a  congenial  society  of 
political  exiles,  and  would  have  been  happy  but  for 
her  grief  over  the  war. 

To  Miss  Dudley.    August  2,  1916. 

"We  must  realize  how  dark  the  common  brain  still 
is.  It  needs  thunder  blows  to  be  awakened  and  begin 
to  think.  Less  than  forty  years  ago,  all  the  East, 
China,  Russia,  etc.,  were  looked  upon  as  dead,  crys- 
tallized in  their  ancestors'  prejudices.  Now  you  see 
mighty  China  acquiring  such  ideas  as  are  found  in  the 
van  of  European  civilization;  and  that  after  five 
thousand  years  of  slumber.  During  the  last  thirty 
years  China  has  received  heavy  blows  on  her  shoulders, 
back  and  head,  and  very  hastily  she  understood  that 
she  can  no  longer  exist  if  she  does  not  prevent  the  new- 
coming  blows.  China  began  to  think,  to  analyze,  to 
compare,  to  find  out  issues,  only  after  hard  and  costly 
experience. 

"Now  we  never  doubt  the  capacities  of  mind  and  the 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    299 

progressive  efficiency  of  the  ocean  of  people  that  only 
yesterday  were  asleep.  All  the  blows,  however  heavy 
and  tyrannical,  are  so  many  lessons  for  the  lazy  brain 
of  the  world's  population  as  a  whole." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     October  1-13,  1916. 

"I  have  read  your  article  about  me.  It  was  too 
much.  I  feel  myself  a  good  soul,  nothing  more." 

To  Ernest  Poole.     October  2,  November  2,  1916. 

"My  very  dear  friend  Ernest  Poole !  It  was  such  a 
joyful  surprise  to  me,  your  dear  letter,  with  your  and 
your  little  son's  portraits  ! 

"I  judge  that  there  has  been  a  great  change  for  the 
better  in  your  country  since  I  saw  it  eleven  years  ago. 
All  right  ideas  and  social  reforms  were  in  their  begin- 
ning ;  they  belonged  to  very  few  groups.  But  now  they 
are  so  widespread  that  they  influence  even  other  coun- 
tries. For  instance,  in  1905  there  was  not  one  paper 
like  the  'New  York  Call  V  which  I  get  now.  I  am 
sure  that  to-day  many  cities  have  such  papers. 

"The  large  intervention  of  women  in  the  prominent 
questions  of  State  life  is  stimulating  the  progress  of 
moral  and  physical  culture  in  your  country,  as  it  has 
elsewhere.  But  what  is  more  essential  is  the  efforts 
of  your  intelligent  people  to  establish  connections  with 
the  people  all  over  the  world.  The  old  world  needs 
new  impulses,  and  must  be  reminded  of  many  questions 
already  accepted  by  advanced  minds,  but  not  yet  put 
in  practice.  All  the  visits  made  by  delegates  of  the 
various  International  Congresses  are  of  great  value, 
and  you  must  not  weary  of  repeating  them." 
1  The  Socialist  daily  in  New  York. 


300  LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION- 

To  Lewis  Herreshoff.     July  24,  1916. 

"I  do  not  think  there  is  any  nationality  quite  innocent 
in  the  horrors  we  are  witnessing.  Yet  I  regard  the 
conduct  of  the  Germans  as  absurd,  even  unpardonable. 
From  my  childhood  I  disliked  the  disdain  and  roughness 
which  characterized  their  behavior  towards  our  Russian 
people,  whom  they  regard  as  an  inferior  race.  Our 
rich  proprietors  often  engaged  German  agronomes  as 
managers  of  their  estates,  and  our  peasants  hated  those 
managers  for  their  systematic  persecutions  and  rough- 
ness. The  punishments  were  terrible;  no  mercy,  no 
indulgence;  very  hard  labors.  I  recognize  that  the 
Germans  are  skilful  in  every  sort  of  manufacture,  that 
they  have  energy  and  perseverance." 

[In  another  letter  she  says :  "  When  we  were  children 
my  parents  employed  a  German  girl  to  teach  us  the 
language.  I  remember  her  rough  voice  and  cold 
manners.  Of  course  there  are  good  souls  among  the 
Germans,  too.  But  Russia  has  rather  suffered  from 
the  German  civilization."] 

"The  English  and  Americans  are  proud  too,  con- 
scious of  the  dignity  of  their  race;  but,  to  my  great 
joy,  they  have  always  recognized  the  good  sides  of  our 
people.  I  have  read  many  books  by  intelligent  travelers 
in  Russia,  and  I  was  always  pleased  with  the  authors' 
impartiality.  Now  too,  when  reading  the  opinions  of 
the  English  papers  on  the  bravery  and  honesty  of  the 
Russian  soldiers,  I  am  sure  that  they  mean  what  they 
say,  for  they  expressed  the  same  opinions  when  witness- 
ing our  war  with  the  Turks  in  1877.  Our  young  men 
fought  like  very  lions. 

"I  do  not  desire  the  destruction  of  the  German  people, 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    301 

not  at  all;  but  I  wish  with  all  my  heart  to  see  them, 
after  this  criminal  war,  humanized  and  respectful 
towards  every  other  nation,  white  or  black  or  yellow. 

"The  intelligence  of  our  mind,  our  soul,  is  much  more 
important  than  our  skill  in  manufacturing  and  our 
outward  culture;  this  last  can  be  acquired  with  time 
and  endeavor,  but  the  religious  tendencies  are  a  dona- 
tion of  rare  and  happy  chance.  We  have  to  develop 
them,  and  not  to  be  ashamed  of  it.  We  shall  always 
feel  our  God  in  our  breast  —  a  God  of  love  and 
righteousness.  That  will  give  us  strength  to  fight  and 
to  win  the  battle. 

"I  am  not  in  the  least  a  chauvinist.  I  respect  the 
rights  of  every  nationality.  I  desire  full  liberty  for 
every  people.  Yet  I  have  a  large  family  of  my  com- 
patriots that  has  its  rights  too,  its  own  history  and 
modes  of  life,  its  own  philosophy  and  faith;  and  as 
long  as  my  people  wish  to  develop  their  capacities  as 
they  think  best,  they  must  be  left  alone  and  have  time 
to  use  their  innate  energy  and  genius ;  on  condition, 
of  course,  that  they  shall  not  meddle  with  the  affairs 
of  others.  When  ripe  enough,  it  will  make  them  able 
to  live  a  common  life  with  their  neighbors,  with  all 
the  world.  Perhaps  the  time  is  not  so  remote  as  we 
might  think." 

To  Miss  Dudley.     November  5,  1916. 

"I  am  like  a  salted  herring  in  a  big  but  immovable 
hogshead,  conserved  nobody  knows  why,  and  waiting, 
waiting,  without  end.  My  straining  and  my  activity 
are  limited  now  so  narrowly  that  I  see  myself  like  a  sea 
urchin  in  its  shell,  only  thinking  and  endeavoring  to 
understand  the  meaning  of  what  mankind  as  a  whole  is 


802    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

doing.  I  turn  and  re-turn  the  facts,  the  sayings  and 
writings  of  different  minds,  of  different  people  in 
different  countries.  As  far  as  I  know,  it  seems  to  me 
that  we  can  agree  with  Mrs.  Catt's  speech,  'The 
Crisis.'  This  brave  woman,  of  a  bright  and  large 
mind,  pleased  me  years  ago,  when,  traveling  over  every 
country  of  the  world,  she  described  the  situation  of  the 
suffrage  amid  the  women  of  the  various  nations.  She 
is  born  a  leader. 

"Now,  I  wonder,  too,  at  the  masterly  way  in  which 
England  does,  with  what  genius  she  holds  together  the 
reins  in  her  hands,  wisely  overlooking  the  affairs  of 
the  world.  I  wish  only  she  may  be  as  sincere  and  noble 
as  she  is  wise  and  strong.  But  it  would  be  a  great 
mistake  on  her  part  to  settle  affairs  selfishly  and  with 
partiality,  for  in  that  case  nothing  would  be  prevented. 
Yet  a  long,  or,  better,  a  continual  peace  is  necessary; 
the  desolation  is  too  profound  to  be  cured  in  a  short 
time.  The  countries  have  lost  all  their  best  young 
forces,  and  we  must  wait  till  the  young  generations 
grow  to  be  of  use.  We  have  thousands  and  thousands 
of  orphans  around  us,  and  if  we  do  not  apply  all  our 
efforts  and  means  to  bring  them  up  and  teach  them,  we 
have  no  future. 

"The  child  question  is  the  most  serious  and  con- 
tinually pressing  question  of  the  age.  I  have  a  lot 
around  me,  the  poorest.  We  are  good  friends,  and  the 
little  I  do  is  already  a  relief  in  their  dull  and  needy  life. 
Many  of  them  visit  the  school,  and  need  books  and 
several  pieces  of  clothes.  I  do  my  best  to  suffice,  but 
they  are  so  many !  It  is  awful  to  see  how  the  world 
is  foolish.  They  are  writing  in  every  paper  about  food 
and  fuel,  and  they  forget  that  if  the  race  dies  out,  there 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    303 

will  be  nobody  to  eat  and  to  provide.  For  shame !  I 
shall  cry  this  question  out  in  every  letter  to  my  many 
correspondents  and  urge  them  to  do  all  they  can  to 
forward  it." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     December  1-14,  1916. 

"If  I  worked  as  assiduously  as  you  do,  nothing  would 
be  left  of  me.  Even  here  in  my  room,  surrounded  by 
comfort,  I  feel  tired  after  I  have  been  visited  by  a  dozen 
persons,  who  want  to  hear  or  to  be  heard.  Perhaps 
it  is  due  to  my  excited  feelings,  that  can't  be  quiet  in 
the  face  of  any  need,  or  of  the  errors  into  which  even 
goodhearted  people  often  fall.  From  my  youth  I 
prayed  the  Creator  to  render  my  nature  more  cool  and 
more  quiet,  but  I  succeed  poorly,  and  it  does  not  take 
much  to  inflame  my  heart,  my  passions  —  when  the 
question  does  not  concern  myself.  For  myself  I  have 
worked  out  a  philosophy  that  doesn't  allow  any  senti- 
mentalism,  and  holds  me  and  my  disposition  in  a  good 
state  of  order  and  peace.  I  would  not  wish  to  dis- 
appear directly,  without  seeing  the  issue  of  the  present 
world  tragedy,  yet,  if  the  end  came,  I  should  not  be 
afraid. 

"To  you  alone  I  confess  one  thought  that  is  of  in- 
terest to  me.  Nearly  every  grand  event  in  the  life  of 
my  own  country,  also  the  solution  of  the  moral  and 
ethical  questions  of  humanity,  have  been  foreseen 
by  me.  In  pursuing  in  my  mind  the  present  course  of 
history  (I  have  done  it  for  more  than  half  a  century), 
in  studying  past  history,  I  have  acquired  the  power  of 
forecast,  and  long  before  events  take  place  or  questions 
come  to  the  front,  I  have  had  them  in  mind,  and  my 
imagination  has  worked  out  the  ways  and  methods  to 


304    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

follow.  For  instance,  the  war  with  Germany  was  not 
in  the  least  a  surprise  to  me.  Five  years  before  it 
happened,  I  had  already  plans  made  how  to  secure  the 
integrity  of  our  country,  how  to  stop  the  invasion.  My 
'preparedness'  was  not  an  offensive  one,  but  genuinely 
a  defensive  one.  Moreover,  all  the  institutions  for  the 
people's  welfare  have  long  ago  been  a  reality  in  my 
imagination,  and  now  I  see  that,  nolens  volens,  some 
of  them  are  to  be  realized  in  fact.  The  question  of 
pedagogy  was  long  ago  discussed  in  my  mind,  eugenics, 
the  perfection  of  the  race.  I  could  cite  more  examples; 
and  it  convinces  me  that  the  terrible  war  will  have  its 
positive  sides,  and  that,  notwithstanding  the  universal 
losses  and  disasters,  the  mind  of  all  mankind  will 
grow  up,  and  many  things  and  questions  not  under- 
stood till  now  will  become  clear,  and  will  take  a  solid 
place  in  the  minds  that  have  so  long  been  wandering 
in  the  dark." 

To  Arthur  Bullard.     November  30-December  13,  1916. 

"The  rigor  of  misery  is  spreading  over  all  Europe, 
but  Russia  suffers  the  most,  owing  to  her  special  condi- 
tions, internal  and  external,  being  a  territory  quite 
apart,  surrounded  on  every  side  with  enemies  of  all 
nationalities  and  creeds.  Nobody  is  in  fault  except 
ourselves.  But  don't  forget  that  the  history  of  our 
people  has  been  more  cruel  than  that  of  other  European 
countries.  Very  cruel  it  was,  and  we  feel  the  conse- 
quences still.  We  shall  feel  them  for  a  long  time  yet,  if 
we  do  not  change  our  indolence  for  a  more  active 
character.  It  is  wonderful  how  much  patience  we  have. 
We  are  not  so  devoid  of  reason  as  not  to  understand 
our  position,  our  surroundings,  the  conditions  that 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION      305 

dominate  us.  We  contemplate  all  this  sighing  and 
wondering,  asking  why  it  is.  And  we  remain  as  pacific 
as  if  nothing  changed. 

"Sometimes  the  horror  of  the  present  is  so  awful 
that  I  need  all  my  will  not  to  sink  into  despair.  You 
have  witnessed  the  horrors  of  war,  but  perhaps  you  did 
not  see  the  horrors  of  the  countries  lying  behind  the 
front.  No  soul  is  strong  enough  to  bear  the  picture  of 
the  world's  sufferings  in  all  their  details.  The  imagina- 
tion halts,  having  no  strength  to  continue  the  survey. 
Unless  one  is  willing  to  go  mad,  one  must  not  stand  and 
inspect  the  facts.  It  is  better  to  be  occupied  by  some 
work  which  demands  our  attention. 

"The  best  means  to  be  diverted  from  the  heart- 
rending spectacle  is  to  have  to  do  with  children.  These 
little  creatures  don't  give  us  time  or  rest  enough  to  be 
absorbed  by  the  idea  of  the  universal  mischief.  When 
they  come  six  or  ten  into  my  room,  we  are  full  of 
activity,  and  all  my  attention  is  fixed  on  their  welfare. 
Books,  paper,  pencils,  scissors,  chiffons,  needle,  thread 
and  many  other  things  are  necessary  to  keep  them  busy 
and  happy.  Some  milk  and  white  bread  are  enough  to 
satisfy  their  appetite.  This  little  family  is  growing  from 
week  to  week,  for  the  orphans  are  so  glad  to  have  some- 
body whom  they  can  call  *  grandmother '  and  be  sure  to 
find  a  home  on  her  bosom ! " 

To  Miss  Starr.     January  26-February  8,  1917. 

"I  do  not  know  who  sends  me  the  Public,1  but, 
reading  this  venerable  paper,  I  always  feel  gratified  at 
having  the  advantage  of  possessing  it." 

1  A  single-tax  paper,  published  in  New  York. 


306    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

To  Miss  Dudley.     January  28-February  10,  1917. 

"I  shall  never  forget  the  moment  you  took  leave  of 
me.  I  do  not  think  you  have  changed  much  since  then, 
but  sometimes  I  wonder  if  you  would  recognize  me. 
My  hair  is  not  only  white  as  snow,  but  very  thin,  my 
teeth  are  gone,  my  walking  slow,  with  a  stick  in  my 
right  hand  when  out  of  doors.  Perhaps  the  eyes  and  the 
voice  are  the  same,  and  I  laugh  often  enough,  which 
is  a  surprise  to  me.  It  is  the  result  of  my  faith  that  the 
great  mischief  of  humanity  will  bring  new  ideas  into 
the  heads  of  the  masses,  and  will  make  the  heads  more 
clear,  the  minds  more  strong.  A  new  era  is  coming,  I 
feel  it  with  all  my  soul.  Even  if  I  die  before  the  end 
of  the  war  I  shall  die  at  peace,  even  for  my  country." 

To  Mr.  Herreshoff.     February  4-17,  1917. 

"  Your  sister  is  seriously  ill !  Your  best  friend  and 
companion !  I  wonder  that  people  living  in  good 
conditions,  surrounded  by  their  family  and  some  com- 
forts, can  be  ill,  being  not  old  enough  for  that.  The 
loss  of  good  people  is  the  greatest  misfortune  to  which 
we  are  subjected.  When  I  hear  that  this  or  that  old 
friend  of  mine  has  left  us  for  another  world,  I  feel 
lonely,  for  I  know  that  by  and  by  these  brave  old 
comrades  will  pass  away  one  after  another. 

"  Depressed  !  it  is  an  awful  state  of  mind,  and  I  wish 
I  could  send  you,  who  have  spent  your  life  without 
constant  misfortune,  a  part  of  my  resignation.  Un- 
certainty is  my  constant  condition.  In  such  a  position 
one  ought  to  be  ready  to  meet  bravely  the  worst  that 
can  happen.  Therefore  I  believe  with  the  little  nephew 
of  your  friend  Miss  Drury,  who  said  to  his  nurse,  *  Why 
do  people  look  so  stern  when  they  say  their  prayers  ?  ' 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    307 

All  our  sufferings  are  very  small  in  comparison  with  the 
sea  of  sorrow  that  deluges  the  world  with  tears  and 
wounds.  Yet  I  hope  that  the  moral  courage  of  your 
country,  for  instance,  and  other  efforts  will  bring  about 
better  results  for  the  world,  and  teach  a  lesson  for  a  long 
time  to  the  wicked  and  to  the  best.  The  voice  of  the 
United  States  will  be  heard,  if  only  that  voice  shall  be 
on  the  side  of  right  and  impartiality.  We  can  hear 
already  the  wishes  all  over  the  world  that  are  asking 
for  equality  of  interest  and  rights.  In  our  misfortunes 
of  to-day  we  can  hope  to  see  better  times,  with  the  help 
of  rightminded  people ;  and  therefore  we  must  agree 
with  the  child  who  remarked  that  we  are  wrong  not  to 
pray  to  God  with  serene  faces,  with  love  and  hope  in 
our  eyes.  I  hope  you  will  support  the  burden  of  life 
with  a  strong  belief  that  your  dear  sister  will  never 
quit  you.  Two  souls  so  closely  bound  together  as 
yours  were  for  so  long  a  time  can  never  be  separated." 

To  Miss  Julia  C.  Drury.     February  24,  1917. 

"My  family  is  growing  from  day  to  day.  We  have 
orphans  in  such  a  quantity  in  every  place  and  nook 
that  we  must  be  ready  to  see  the  whole  country  covered 
only  with  widows  and  children.  What  is  absurd  is 
that  the  rich  people  do  very  little  to  mitigate  the  wants 
and  the  misfortunes  of  the  young  people  who  are  our 
only  hope  for  a  better  future. 

"Mankind  is  so  short-sighted  that  it  does  not  pay 
attention  to  what  is  the  most  precious  thing  the  world 
over,  children  and  youth. 

"Animals,  plants,  bijouterie,  furniture,  all  material 
things  are  of  great  value  to  them,  and  the  best  flower  on 
earth,  the  best  creature  of  the  Creator,  is  only  a  burden, 


308    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

an  undesired  element  that  hinders  them  and  disturbs 
their  good  humor. 

"They  forget  that  all  our  happiness  depends  on  the 
welfare  and  good  education  of  the  country  children, 
that  must  give  us  a  strong,  clever,  and  honest  popula- 
tion. 

"This  furious  war,  as  I  hope,  will  teach  the  majority 
of  mankind  to  understand  its  own  interest,  and  to 
improve  life  throughout." 

Writing  in  the  Neva  after  the  revolution,  she  said : 

"There  pulsed  so  much  life  in  my  heart  that  I  could 
not  imagine  the  end  of  my  activities.  Neither  the  long 
terms  passed  in  jail  nor  my  exile  in  Yakutsk  had  dimmed 
my  spirit.  'I  shall  live  through  all  this,'  said  an  inner 
voice  to  me;  'I  shall  live  through  everything,  and  live 
to  see  the  bright  days  of  freedom.* 

"  In  Irkutsk  when  I  was  very  ill,  I  observed  how  care- 
fully the  physicians  concealed  from  me  the  danger  of 
my  malady.  It  seemed  so  strange  to  me  that  people 
could  think  of  my  fatal  end,  when  my  soul  was  full  of 
complete  faith  that  time  was  bringing  me  nearer  daily 
to  a  different  kind  of  end,  the  triumph  of  the  revolution ! 

"The  longer  the  war  continued,  the  more  horrible  its 
consequences  grew,  the  more  clearly  the  rascality  of 
the  government  manifested  itself,  the  more  inevitable 
appeared  the  rise  of  democracy  all  over  the  world,  the 
nearer  advanced  also  our  revolution. 

"I  waited  for  the  sounds  of  the  bell  announcing 
freedom,  and  wondered  why  that  sound  delayed. 
When  in  November,  1916,  explosions  of  indignation 
followed  one  another,  I  had  already  one  foot  in  the 
Siberian  sleigh,  only  feeling  sorry  that  the  snow  road 
was  beginning  to  thaw. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    309 

"March  4-17  a  telegram  reached  me  in  Minussmsk 
announcing  freedom.  The  same  day  I  was  on  my 
way  to  Atchinsk,  the  nearest  railroad  station.  From 
Atchinsk  on  began  my  uninterrupted  communion  with 
soldiers,  peasants,  workmen,  railroad  employes,  stu- 
dents, and  multitudes  of  beloved  women,  who  to-day 
are  all  bearing  the  burdens  of  the  normal  and  now  also 
of  the  abnormal  life  of  a  great  State." 


CHAPTER  XVII 

ONE  of  the  first  acts  of  the  Provisional  Government 
was  to  declare  an  amnesty  to  all  the  political  prisoners 
and  exiles.  There  were  said  to  be  one  hundred  thou- 
sand in  Siberia  alone.  All  who  could  do  so  started  at 
once  for  Russia. 

The  government  sent  Madame  Breshkovsky  a 
special  invitation  to  return.  The  long  homeward 
journey  was  one  continuous  ovation.  The  soldiers 
joined  with  the  populace  to  carry  her  in  triumph. 
When  she  reached  Moscow,  she  was  placed  in  the  Czar's 
state  coach,  and  taken  amid  a  military  escort  to  the 
hall  where  the  Moscow  Douma  was  sitting.  There 
she  was  given  an  official  welcome,  with  greetings  and 
orations. 

"Citizens,"  she  said,  "one  thought  is  in  my  mind. 
Joy  gives  place  to  care.  At  every  station  and  cross 
roads  there  is  only  one  demand.  It  is  the  groan  of 
the  people  for  literature,  books,  teachers." 

She  went  on  to  make  an  earnest  plea  for  universal 
education.  She  had  told  her  American  friends  that, 
instead  of  conscripting  all  the  young  men  to  serve  a 
term  in  the  army,  as  under  the  old  regime,  she  would 
like  to  have  every  man  and  woman  in  Russia  who 
could  read  and  write  conscripted  to  serve  for  a  few 
years  as  a  school  teacher.  In  this  way  Russia's  great 
illiteracy  could  all  be  wiped  out  in  a  very  short  time. 

310 


LITTLE   GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    311 

At  Petrograd  the  whole  city  turned  out  to  meet 
her.  A  vast  crowd  waving  red  flags  and  singing  the 
Marseillaise  >  extended  down  the  west  end  of  Nevsky 
Prospekt  as  far  as  the  Nicolaievsk  railway  station. 
When  the  Associated  Press  correspondent  arrived, 
he  found  the  crowd  trying  to  storm  the  station,  to 
which  none  were  admitted  but  veteran  revolutionists 
and  a  deputation  from  the  Ministry  of  Justice,  headed 
by  A.  F.  Kerensky,  together  with  delegations  of  wel- 
come from  the  Petrograd,  Moscow  and  Dorpat  Uni- 
versities and  high  schools.  A  volunteer  guard  of 
soldiers  and  students  was  trying  to  hold  back  the 
crowd. 

At  Kerensky's  suggestion,  the  welcome  to  Madame 
Breshkovsky  took  place  in  the  gorgeous  suite  in  the 
railway  station  called  the  Imperial  Reception  Rooms, 
which  under  the  old  regime  were  used  only  for  the 
reception  of  royal  personages.  All  the  survivors  of 
the  "Old  Guard"  among  the  revolutionists  were  there. 
Around  the  large  drawing  room  were  scores  of  baskets 
and  wreaths  of  flowers,  the  scarlet  tulip  predominat- 
ing, with  such  inscriptions  as  "To  Our  Dear  Grand- 
mother", "To  Russia's  Martyr  Heroine." 

When  the  train  arrived  the  crowd  again  attempted 
to  storm  the  station,  crying,  "Let  us  see  Grand- 
mother!" The  guards  quieted  them,  explaining  the 
danger  of  a  crush,  and  assuring  them  that  all  would 
be  allowed  to  take  part  in  the  welcome. 

"I  do  not  think  that  anywhere  in  the  world  there 
ever  was  a  bride  who  received  so  many  flowers," 
said  the  old  heroine,  smiling  and  pointing  to  her  car 
in  the  train,  filled  with  flowers  given  her  on  her  way 
from  Siberia.  She  had  been  met  by  enthusiastic 


312    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

crowds  at  every  station  on  her  long  journey ;  she  had 
seen  all  Russia,  all  her  "grandchildren",  workingmen, 
soldiers,  peasants,  and  citizens  of  all  ranks,  greeting 
her  as  the  symbol  of  the  long  struggle  for  freedom. 

In  her  special  car  were  several  men,  some  of  whom 
had  gone  to  meet  her  in  Moscow.  Among  them  was 
the  Secretary  of  Justice,  Kerensky. 

Secretary  Kerensky  handed  "Grandmother"  a  bou- 
quet of  red  roses,  and  they  kissed  three  times.  She 
addressed  him  with  the  familiar  "  thou",  and  described 
with  enthusiasm  her  visit  to  Moscow. 

Madame  Breshkovsky  appeared  at  the  door,  leaning 
on  Kerensky's  arm.  Taking  off  his  hat,  the  Secretary 
of  Justice  addressed  the  crowd :  "  Comrades,  the 
Grandmother  of  the  Russian  Revolution  has  returned 
at  last  to  a  free  country.  She  has  been  in  dungeons, 
in  the  penal  settlements  of  the  Lena,  has  been  tortured 
endlessly,  yet  here  we  have  her  with  us,  brave  and 
happy.  Let  us  shout  *  Hurrah'  for  our  dear  Grand- 
mother!" 

The  platform  fairly  shook  with  the  thunder  of  ac- 
clamation that  followed,  and,  to  the  accompaniment 
of  rousing  ovations,  the  beloved  Grandmother,  led 
by  Kerensky,  walked  to  the  reception  rooms,  where 
numerous  deputations  were  awaiting  her. 

A  party  of  nurses  came  first,  handing  her  flowers 
and  waving  a  red  flag  with  the  inscription :  "  Long 
live  the  Grandmother  of  the  Russian  Revolution!" 
The  spokeswoman  said : 

"We  nurses  are  but  an  infinitesimal  group  of  all 
those  sisters  who,  in  this  happy  day  for  Russia,  send 
you  their  humble  and  worshipful  greetings." 

She  was  surrounded  on  all  sides;    women  pushed 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    313 

one  another  to  kiss  her  hands,  men  doffed  their  hats 
and  shouted  "Hurrah!"  as  Madame  Breshkovsky, 
accompanied  by  Kerensky,  proceeded  to  the  waiting 
automobile  to  be  taken  to  the  Congress  of  Workers' 
Delegates.  A  sitting  of  the  Council  of  Soldiers' 
Deputies  was  in  progress.  When  the  news  came  that 
"Grandmother"  had  arrived,  every  one  present  rose 
and  applauded.  The  ovation  lasted  a  long  time. 

The  first  to  speak  was  Kerensky.  He  said:  "I 
am  happy  and  proud  to  greet  you,  Grandmother,  in 
the  name  of  Russian  democracy  and  the  Provisional 
Government.  I  am  happy  to  greet  you,  whom  the 
old  government  had  persecuted  and  whom  we  now 
meet  with  such  honor." 

"In  the  name  of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the 
Council  of  Soldiers'  and  Workers'  Delegates,"  said 
N.  S.  Tcheidze,  "  I  greet  the  woman  who  inspired  the 
Russian  Revolution.  Let  us  hope  that,  with  the  same 
faith  in  the  righteousness  of  the  cause,  she  will  continue 
to  inspire  us  in  our  work  of  further  conquests  on  the 
road  of  freeing  Russia.  Again  I  greet  you  humbly 
and  salute  you ! " 

One  after  another,  representatives  of  various  groups 
rose  to  greet  the  beloved  Grandmother.  Deeply 
moved,  Madame  Breshkovsky  replied  to  these  greet- 
ings. Every  one  rose.  She  said  : 

"I  have  come  over  a  long  road.  I  am  old  and  can- 
not remember  everything.  As  I  came  out  on  the 
platform  I  saw  the  people ;  all  around  I  saw  working- 
men.  I  came  into  this  temple  of  freedom,  and  see 
military  organizations,  workmen,  Cossacks,  sailors. 
Thus  I  have  to-day  had  the  happiness  of  seeing  repre- 
sentatives of  all  organized  Russia.  Is  not  this  com- 


314    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

plete  happiness !  It  proves  that  we  can  work  in 
unison,  free  and  happy,  without  discord,  as  one  man. 

"  Dear  citizens  !  I  have  been  fifty  years  in  the  ranks 
of  the  Russian  Revolution,  and  without  boast  can  say 
that  there  was  never  one  more  true  to  duty  and  disci- 
pline, or  who  appreciated  more  the  meaning  of  obliga- 
tions. Never  has  there  been  any  wrangling  or  dis- 
putes in  my  party  on  my  account.  I  have  always 
respected  the  opinions  of  my  comrades  and  the  rulings 
of  the  party  to  such  an  extent  that  I  have  invariably 
stood  for  a  friendly  settlement  of  the  most  disputable 
questions. 

"Do  not  I  see  that  you  are  all  children  of  the  same 
cause  ?  The  soldier  —  isn't  he  the  same  as  the  work- 
ingman  ?  You  are  all  children  of  our  one  great  mother, 
Russia,  and  why  should  you  suddenly  begin  to  quarrel 
with  one  another  ?  " 

A  soldier  approached  close  to  the  platform  where 
"Grandmother"  was  speaking.  She  picked  out  a  rose 
from  her  bouquet  and  handed  it  to  her  "grandson." 
The  soldier  kissed  her  hand  tenderly.  Madame 
Breshkovsky  gently  stroked  the  soldier's  hair,  and 
continued  amidst  thunderous  applause : 

"If  we  all  aspire  towards  freedom  and  equality, 
what  differences  can  there  be  between  us?  What  is 
there  to  disagree  about  ?  Why  put  sticks  in  the  spokes 
of  one  another's  wheels  ?  If  we  seek  to  overcome  such 
an  enemy,  such  a  bitter  foe  of  Russia  as  Wilhelm,  can 
we  not  overcome  our  little  differences?  It  would 
say  very  little  for  our  wisdom  if  we  could  not  combat 
those. 

"All  these  greetings,  on  all  sides,  addressed  to  one 
and  the  same  person  —  whom  you  call  your  Grand- 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    315 

mother  —  prove  that  you  are  unanimous.  Everyone 
says,  'We  will  die  for  freedom.'  In  this  I  see  soli- 
darity. Everyone  understands  that  if  we  do  not  over- 
come the  foe,  it  will  bring  our  country  to  grief;  he, 
our  bloody  foe,  will  come  and  will  dictate  to  us  his 
laws.  I  am  sure  no  one  wants  that.  We  do  not  de- 
sire any  annexations,  we  have  no  wish  to  ruin  others, 
but  to  allow  yourselves  to  be  trampled  upon,  to  lose 
your  self-respect,  that  would  be  unworthy  of  great 
Russia ! 

"My  children,  nothing  is  obtained  gratis.  No 
complete  freedom  can  be  obtained  without  hard 
work.  You  know  perhaps  better  than  I  that  nothing 
accomplishes  itself  —  brain  and  spirit  are  necessary. 
For  three  years  Russia  has  been  suffering,  as  no  one 
has  suffered,  and  perhaps  more  suffering  will  have  to 
be  borne  before  we  reach  the  goal.  Then  let  us  unite, 
and  let  us  strive  that  no  petty  differences  shall  mar  the 
way  to  our  chief  aim  —  the  freedom  and  happiness  of 
the  whole  nation.'* 

Madame  Breshkovsky  ended  amidst  enthusiastic 
and  continuous  applause. 

The  chair  into  which  she  sank  was  lifted  by  Ke- 
rensky,  Tcheidze,  Secretary  of  Labor,  Skobelev,  and 
others,  who  placed  it  carefully  on  their  shoulders,  and 
accompanied  by  unprecedented  acclamations  carried 
it  to  the  Ekaterininsk  hall,  where  they  were  met  with 
further  applause  and  ovations.  Flowers  were  carried 
in  front  of  the  chair.  A  ring  was  formed  around  to  clear 
the  passage,  and  the  beloved  Grandmother  was  carried 
to  the  entrance. 

Here  a  large  gathering  of  representatives  of  the 
army,  from  the  trenches  and  reserves,  awaited  her. 


316    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"In  the  name  of  the  old-Russian  garrison  of  25,000 
men,  allow  me,  Grandmother,  to  greet  you!" 

"Grandmother"  patted  the  soldier  gently  and  gave 
him  a  rose.  "Go  back,"  she  said,  "and  tell  them  that 
Grandmother  has  sent  them  a  rose  and  her  greetings." 

A  Red  Cross  nurse  approached.  "In  the  name  of 
the  nurses  on  the  northern  front,  allow  me  to  kiss 
you."  "Grandmother"  kissed  her  and  gave  her  a 
rose  also. 

"I  have  been  wounded  four  times,"  said  an  officer 
near  by.  "My  brother  lost  his  life  for  freedom. 
My  father  has  suffered.  It  was  with  difficulty  that  I 
obtained  permission  to  don  a  uniform  to  stand  in  the 
ranks  of  the  army.  Allow  me  to  greet  you  in  the 
name  of  the  invalided." 

"Thank  you,  dear,  thank  you." 

A.  A.  Nazarov,  Cossack,  member  of  the  Douma, 
greeted  her  in  the  name  of  the  members  of  the  Douma : 

"  Long  live  the  great  Russian  Grandmother !  In 
your  youth  you  spread  the  seed  of  freedom,  and  in 
your  old  age  you  have  made  Russia  happy.  Long  live 
the  bearers  of  peace ;  long  live  the  Russian  woman  ! " 

An  automobile  carried  away  "Grandmother"  and 
Kerensky. 

The  Guards'  Economic  Society  was  holding  a  meet- 
ing in  the  theatre  of  Musical  Drama  and  invited 
her  to  honor  them  with  her  presence.  Two  other 
heroes  of  the  Russian  Revolution  were  present  —  Vera 
Figner  and  Herman  Lopatin,  both  of  whom  had 
spent  a  quarter  of  a  century  in  the  Schlusselburg 
fortress.  It  is  hard  to  describe  the  reception  accorded 
"Grandmother"  and  the  other  veterans  of  the  revo- 
lution. The  audience  hung  on  every  word  she  said, 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    317 

on  every  gesture,  and  responded  to  everything  with 
enthusiasm. 

When  she  talked  about  the  unity  of  the  people, 
the  power  that  is  only  obtained  by  unity,  when  she 
pointed  to  the  other  veterans  of  the  old  guard  of  the 
Russian  Revolution,  Vera  Figner  and  Herman  Lopatin, 
and  told  how  they  had  replaced  one  another  at  the 
revolutionary  front  in  the  olden  days,  and  emphasized 
that  they  were  strong  only  because  there  had  been 
no  division  among  them;  when  she  called  upon  all 
her  friends  and  "children"  to  unite  mind  and  heart 
in  a  single  purpose,  in  the  name  of  freedom  —  the 
crowd  listened  enraptured,  and  after  a  moment  of 
dead  silence,  burst  into  applause. 

Lopatin  said:  "There  is  no  price  too  dear  for  that 
freedom  which  we  now  have.  And  I  am  happy  that 
in  the  decline  of  my  years  before  the  end  —  I  am  grow- 
ing deaf  and  blind  —  I  am  able  to  see  the  triumph 
of  a  freed  Russia."  Vera  Figner  was  indisposed  and 
tired,  and  did  not  speak. 

The  audience,  as  one  man,  stood  up  and  applauded 
vociferously  the  old  fighters  for  Russia's  freedom. 
When  the  beloved  Grandmother  of  the  Revolution 
was  carried  from  the  hall  to  her  automobile,  to  the 
strains  of  the  Marseillaise  played  by  the  soldiers  of 
the  Volhyn  regiment,  hundreds  of  eyes  followed 
this  simple  and  quiet  old  woman,  in  whose  face  could 
be  read  the  chronicle  of  a  great  struggle  and  the  joy 
of  the  great  triumph. 


318    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

Cablegram.     Petrograd,  April  13,  1917. 

To  Alice  Stone  Blackwell,  the  Woman's  Journal, 
Boston,  U.  S.  A. 

"Greetings  from  free  Russia  to  the  people  of  the 
U.  S.  A. !  Am  enjoying  happiness,  with  all  the  city, 
and  Russia  and  Siberia. 

"Breshkovsky." 

A  like  cablegram  came  to  Miss  Wald. 

To  Miss  Dudley.    April  14-27,  1917.     On  a  picture 

card. 

"I  have  sent  two  telegrams  to  American  friends, 
but  no  letter  until  now.  From  the  4th  of  our  March 
till  to-day,  I  have  never  been  alone.  All  the  way 
through  Siberia,  the  Urals  and  Russia,  the  people 
came  by  thousands  and  wanted  some  words  from 
me;  often  even  at  night  I  spoke  from  my  railroad 
car,  which  is  now  my  dwelling ;  for  I  go  from  one  place 
to  another  to  see  and  speak  and  hear. 

"I  dare  say  with  certainty  that  our  people  is  a  re- 
sponsible and  right-feeling  one.  The  war  will  continue 
till  our  friends  will  discontinue  it  without  annexations. 

"I  was  in  Minussinsk  when  it  happened.  This 
(picture)  is  the  army  of  our  people  the  first  day  of  the 
revolution  in  Moscow.  We  hope  it  will  continue  as 
well  as  it  has  begun.  I  am  quite  well.  Much  to  do, 
very  much :  but  it  is  my  life." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     Moscow.     April  26-May  9,  1917. 

"I  am  healthy,  and  strong,  and  happy  —  yes, 
happy,  though  always  thinking  about  the  future. 
How  will  the  war  end,  and  how  soon  ?  Will  our  peo- 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    319 

pie  be  always  as  reasonable  as  they  are  now?  I  am 
sure  they  will :  but  certain  foolish  individuals  hope  to 
influence  the  masses  badly.  Yet  there  are  more  good 
events,  and  a  quantity  of  good  people. 

"I  had  lived  so  long  with  my  hope  of  seeing  Russia 
free  that  I  was  not  a  bit  astonished  to  see  it  realized, 
and  the  confidence  of  my  fellow  citizens  makes  me  sure 
of  a  happy  future,  after  the  war.  The  losses  are  enor- 
mous, and  every  one  is  busy  with  some  work  to  pro- 
vide the  army  with  food  and  all  sorts  of  munitions." 

We  have  had  other  glimpses  of  her  through  the  press. 
At  a  great  meeting  in  Moscow  called  by  the  League 
to  Promote  Equal  Rights  for  Women,  she  said : 

"You  have  received  me  as  a  heroine.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  you  have  never  heard  of  anything  heroic  done 
by  me,  unless  it  be  that  all  my  life  I  have  held  my  post 
like  a  faithful  soldier  and  have  done  my  work  quietly. 
Even  so,  I  could  not  do  it  all  the  time.  Thirty-two 
years  of  prison  and  of  Siberia  kept  me  practically 
idle ;  only  eleven  years  of  *  underground '  life  gave  me 
the  opportunity  to  engage  in  the  active  work  as  dic- 
tated by  my  heart.  And  that  was  not  heroic  work; 
it  was  ordinary,  everyday  work,  yet  the  kind  of  work 
the  people  need. 

"There  is  no  need  of  heroic  deeds.  Unfortunately, 
many  inactive  persons  imagine  that  it  is  necessary  to 
perform  something  wonderful,  heroic  —  that  one  is 
either  to  sit  in  passive  idleness,  or  else  to  ascend  to 
the  summit  of  a  lofty  mountain  and  there  perform  an 
act  of  such  extraordinary  heroism  as  shall  reverberate 
throughout  the  world.  As  a  result  these  people  sit 
idly  at  home  and  do  nothing. 

"To  be  sure,  there  are  times  and  emergencies  de- 


320    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

manding  and  producing  great  talents,  prodigious  powers 
of  mind  and  action,  heroic  deeds.  But  I  wish  you  to 
bear  in  mind  that  there  is  a  great  deal  of  work  to  be 
done  in  ordinary  times  —  ordinary,  not  heroic  work, 
that  has  to  be  done,  that  is  of  great  importance  and 
is  much  needed. 

"My  greatest  treasure  is  my  infinite  love  for  the 
people.  Many  of  those  who  worked  and  suffered  with 
me  shared  that  treasure.  Only  I  have  been  more 
fortunate  in  that  I  happened  to  have  a  stronger  con- 
stitution and  survived,  while  the  others  succumbed. 
We  all  aimed  to  bring  light  and  freedom  to  the  people. 
Now  it  is  the  duty  of  those  who  survive  to  work  harder 
for  the  realization  of  that  aim. 

"It  is  my  desire  now  to  organize  a  great  publishing 
house  for  the  purpose  of  producing  and  circulating 
among  the  plain  people  the  sort  of  literature  they  need 
—  the  books  to  be  written  in  the  plainest  language, 
so  that  any  one  can  understand.  It  is  likewise  neces- 
sary to  organize  a  corps  of  young  people  to  engage 
in  disseminating  this  literature  throughout  the  length 
and  breadth  of  the  country.  Within  a  few  days  I  shall 
begin  to  work  on  these  lines.  I  may,  perhaps,  be 
granted  the  use  of  a  railroad  car  —  I  have  no  home  — 
and  travel  from  one  end  of  Russia  to  the  other,  to  meet 
and  speak  to  those  who  need  our  word  and  deed." 

To  Miss  Blackwell.     May  3, 1917.    My  Railroad  Car. 

"This  is  only  the  second  card  I  write  you,  since 
liberty  made  me  a  free  citizen  of  a  free  country.  You 
can't  imagine  how  much  there  is  to  do  now.  Day 
and  night  the  best  people  are  busy  with  thousands  of 
affairs,  great  and  small.  I  am  making  a  tour  over 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    321 

our  large  country  to  see  and  to  speak.  The  long  years 
of  sufferings  have  had  their  effect.  Friendship  is 
spread  everywhere,  and  every  one  wants  to  have  the 
old  woman  who  loved  so  long  and  so  heartily  all  who 
suffered  and  wished  to  be  free.  My  voice  does  not 
suffice  to  express  all  I  would  say,  and  I  have  with  me 
a  young  *  grandson '  who  continues  the  speeches  I  begin. 
Soldiers,  peasants,  workmen  and  all  the  youth  is  with 
us.  Frenchmen  and  Englishmen  wonder  to  see  the 
solidarity  of  such  a  large  country,  with  so  many  dif- 
ferent nationalities.  Alice,  I  am  happy,  but  not  quiet 
till  the  war  is  finished  and  all  the  forces  occupied  with 
the  interior  affairs." 

To  Miss  Dudley.     May  7-20,  1917.     Petrograd. 

"My  travels  will  continue  the  whole  summer,  till 
we  have  the  Reunion  Legislative,  when  the  voice  of 
all  our  170,000,000  people  will  be  heard  and  the  fun- 
damental laws  settled.  We  are  having  some  trouble 
with  a  few  bad  minds,  or  foolish  minds,  but  it  is  im- 
possible to  avoid  some  discomforts  in  such  a  large 
and  new  situation." 

Moscow,  May  13,  1917. 

"To  all  my  dear  Friends :  It  goes  better  and  better. 
The  peasants  are  strong  and  well  disposed,  always 
ready  to  do  their  best.  The  army,  too,  for  it  is  com- 
posed of  peasants'  boys.  There  are  some  people 
that  have  imbibed  foreign  ideas  (from  Germany),  but 
they  are  few,  and  in  a  few  days  all  the  tempest  they 
have  awakened  in  the  capital  will  disappear.  Such  a 
great  revolution  as  we  have  here  cannot  be  carried 
through  without  some  troubles. 


322    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

"We  women  have  all  the  rights  we  wanted,  quite 
such  as  the  men.  In  short,  the  program  is  broad 
enough  to  make  the  people  happy  for  centuries  of 
ages.  Yet  we  must  work  as  never  before;  and  the 
work  would  not  be  so  hard  if  there  were  more  people 
of  experience. 

"I  have  been  expecting  this  time  (of  a  great  revolu- 
tion) for  many  years.  It  gave  me  strength  and  cour- 
age, and  I  was  prepared  in  my  mind  for  the  things  I 
am  doing  now.  But  all  the  rest  were  so  astonished, 
it  was  such  a  big  surprise  to  them,  that  they  are  learn- 
ing their  task  only  now,  when  the  events  do  not  wait, 
and  demand  a  resolute  and  strong  conviction." 

She  was  elected  a  member  of  the  National  Peasants' 
Congress,  receiving  the  largest  vote  among  all  the  nine 
hundred  delegates,  with  one  exception.  She  was  with 
Kerensky  when  he  reviewed  the  Black  Sea  fleet,  and 
she  has  been  standing  with  him  during  the  recent 
troubles.  She  is  reported  as  saying  that  the  best 
thing  the  Americans  can  do  for  the  Russians  at  present 
is  to  help  them  to  vanquish  Germany. 

To  Miss  Blackwell.    The  Crimea.    May  30-June  13, 

1917. 

"The  old  girl  is  busy,  and  often  very  preoccupied 
with  the  state  of  affairs  throughout  the  country.  Not 
the  country,  no,  but  the  front,  which  has  been  going 
mad  with  the  sole  idea  of  liberty.  Young  people 
without  education  and  knowledge  imagine  that  the 
war  must  be  abandoned,  since  the  people  were  not 
asked  to  begin  it.  Some  ignorant  and  some  bad 
individuals  inspired  and  enforced  these  ideas  among 
the  recruits,  and  it  took  time  and  efforts  before  the 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    323 

soldiers  were  convinced  that  they  ought  to  begin 
again  to  do  their  duty.  It  is  much  better  now. 

"Thanks  to  Providence,  our  peasants,  fathers  and 
husbands,  are  reasonable  enough  to  wait,  and  to  main- 
tain order  in  their  villages.  But  the  young  workers 
and  young  soldiers  are  too  inexperienced  and  ignorant 
to  be  mindful  and  patient.  They  imagine  that  all 
the  old  wrongs  can  be  undone  in  some  days,  and  there- 
fore they  demand  new  conditions  of  life  that  cannot 
be  created  in  a  few  months,  and  with  a  war  on  our 
shoulders. 

"Happily,  we  have  now  a  board  of  Ministers  very 
noble  in  all  senses.  Most  of  them  are  Socialists,  old 
acquaintances  of  mine,  too. 

"After  the  war  there  will  be  a  great  deal  of  work 
to  do,  especially  for  the  education  of  the  whole  people. 
I  should  be  so  happy  to  see  this  work  begun  and  ad- 
vanced before  I  am  ready  to  go  away ! 

"To-day  I  got  a  letter  from  some  women  who  pro- 
pose to  form  a  regiment  of  women  alone,  to  go  to  war 
and  show  how  one  must  fight  for  the  liberty  and  wel- 
fare of  one's  people.  From  another  place  I  got  the 
same  proposition.  If  there  are  many  women  desirous 
to  enlist,  we  will  write  to  the  Minister  of  War  offering 
our  services. 

"Do  not  laugh.  At  this  time  every  expedient  that 
will  serve  to  attain  a  good  end  will  be  welcome.  Our 
women  have  never  feared  dangers,  and  if  our  example 
will  promote  the  affairs  of  the  war,  we  shall  be  glad  to 
die  for^it.  For  Russia  is  bound  hand  and  foot,  resting 
as  it  is  now. 

"When  the  land  of  the  republic  becomes  the  com- 
monwealth property  of  the  whole  people,  it  will  make 


324    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

us  rich,  and  able  to  attain  many  great  advantages, 
not  yet  realized  anywhere. 

"My  beloved  child,  there  are  moments  when  I 
would  be  so  happy  to  lay  my  head  upon  your  lap!" 

She  enclosed  a  photograph  of  herself  surrounded  by 
flowers,  and  said:  "The  young  comrades  cherish  the 
grandmother,  and  wish  to  have  her  surrounded  with 
flowers  and  red  ribbons.  The  old  woman  is  always 
ready  to  do  the  will  of  her  little  children.  Sometimes 
she  feels  like  a  fool,  but  never  mind. 

"I  am  to  install  in  many  places  printing  presses  to 
multiply  pamphlets  and  newspapers  for  the  peasants, 
soldiers  and  workmen.  I  collect  the  money  and 
choose  the  most  convenient  places." 

The  Last  Letter.1 
June  10-23,  1917.    The  Crimea. 

"My  ever-dear  and  beloved  friends,  Alice  S.  Black- 
well,  Helena  Dudley,  Jane  Addams,  Ellen  Starr,  Arthur 
Bullard,  friend  Poole  and  so  many  others,  faithful 
and  brave ! 

"  A  new  history  of  the  world  is  beginning,  and  here 
we  are  at  the  first  steps  of  a  march  always  difficult, 
but  promising  the  most  desirable  results. 

"We  are  directing  our  steps  toward  Socialism,  and 
the  task  is  to  make  them  secure,  firm  and  real.  We 
Socialists  are  working  energetically  for  this,  and  the 
sympathy  that  we  meet  with  from  the  people  gives  us 
courage  and  assurance. 

"Certain  disorders  and  some  partial  revolts,  of 
which  the  newspapers  speak,  have  taken  place  here 
and  there,  it  is  true.  We  are  doing  our  utmost  to 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    325 

combat  the  false  ideas  spread  by  stupid  or  malevolent 
persons,  scoundrels  who  have  nothing  to  lose,  without 
conscience  or  honor,  who  have  come  from  every  part 
of  the  world.  But  the  truth  is  that  their  propaganda 
affects  only  young,  weak  and  ignorant  minds.  And 
as  our  army  is  made  up  mostly  of  such  elements,  it  is 
the  army  that  is  the  breeding  place  of  all  the  disturb- 
ances which  we  have  to  overcome.  As  for  the  rest  of 
the  population  —  the  men  and  women  of  the  villages 
and  of  the  faubourgs,  —  they  constitute  a  peaceful 
and  patriotic  element,  desirous  to  see  the  war  brought 
to  an  end  advantageous  to  Russia  (without  losses  and 
without  humiliations). 

"But  you  can  well  conceive,  my  friends,  that  people 
most  of  whom  (the  women  included)  do  not  know  how 
to  read  or  write,  cannot  offer  a  foundation  firm  and 
durable  enough,  an  audience  intelligent  enough  to 
understand  and  remember  everything  that  they  hear 
from  time  to  time  from  their  Socialist  friends,  who, 
with  all  their  efforts,  cannot  suffice  to  be  everywhere 
and  as  often  as  would  be  needful. 

"Vast  distances,  provinces  situated  at  the  farthest 
limits  of  this  immense  country,  always  remain  plunged 
in  darkness,  and  cannot  take  in,  cannot  form  a  correct 
idea  of  what  is  going  on  in  the  world. 

"It  is  necessary  to  illuminate,  to  enlighten  the 
minds  of  a  nation  that  is  ready  to  grasp  knowledge; 
a  nation  that  has  been  forcibly  deprived  of  all  teach- 
ing. For  there  are  only  a  few  thousand  fortunate 
persons  who  were  able  to  get  an  education  in  the  small 
number  of  schools  that  did  not  in  any  way  meet  the 
needs  of  a  population  of  170,000,000. 

"Yes,  our  past  history  has  been  a  fatal  one  for  Russia 


326    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

in  every  respect.  The  finances  utterly  ruined,  all 
the  country's  present  wealth  and  resources  devastated, 
the  war  which  is  absorbing  the  rest,  increasing  our 
debts  at  the  rate  of  40,000,000  rubles  a  day.  More- 
over, at  present  we  lack  everything  necessary,  such  as 
machines,  tools,  paper,  etc.  We  have  everything  to 
repair,  not  only  to  meet  the  present  situation,  but  with 
a  view  to  the  future  of  our  nation,  which  is  capable  of 
taking  an  active  part  in  the  upbuilding  of  the  civil- 
ization of  the  world. 

"The  new  history  must  make  all  the  nations  members 
of  one  family.  The  better  these  members  are  pre- 
pared for  a  reasonable  and  brotherly  life,  the  better 
they  understand  the  reciprocity  of  their  mutual  in- 
terests, the  better  they  know  each  others'  customs, 
history  and  civilization,  the  surer  and  deeper  will  be 
their  friendship,  the  stronger  will  be  the  ties  that 
unite  them. 

**The  international  interdependence  of  reciprocal 
interests  (present  and  future)  is  a  subject  that  must 
be  thoroughly  gone  into  in  all  its  complexity;  but  an 
ignorant  nation  will  have  difficulty  in  understanding 
it  unless  it  is  introduced  to  it  by  some  preliminary 
explanations  and  has  some  concrete  ideas  about  it. 
We  must  teach  them  the  causes  of  the  present  war, 
and  set  before  them  the  consequences  that  may  fol- 
low if  the  Russians  do  not  behave  properly  towards 
their  Allies. 

"My  friends  and  I  are  doing  our  utmost  to  furnish 
the  country  with  the  necessary  literature,  to  organize 
groups  of  intelligent  women  and  men  ready  to  go  among 
the  masses  to  enlighten  and  instruct  them  —  men, 
women,  youths,  even  old  people.  In  the  hospitals, 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    327 

in  the  barracks,  wherever  there  is  anybody  to  talk  to, 
they  are  explaining,  giving  lessons,  readings,  etc. 

"But  we  are  too  few  to  meet  this  vast  need  for  in- 
struction. They  snatch  our  pamphlets  from  us,  they 
ask  for  more  and  still  more  of  them ;  from  every  corner, 
near  and  far,  they  are  begging  us  to  send  them  teachers, 
readers.  But  we  cannot  respond  to  more  than  a 
tenth  part  of  these  demands.  Time  presses,  questions 
are  piling  up,  the  war  is  ruining  the  whole  world;  we 
are  nearer  the  brink  of  ruin  than  the  rest. 

"The  bourgeoisie  think  only  of  themselves;  they 
are  not  helping  us.  We  need  many  good  newspapers, 
capable  of  reaching  the  intelligence  of  all  our  igno- 
rant people,  and  showing  them  the  truth  about  the 
present  situation,  the  misfortune  that  awaits  us  if  we 
lose  the  esteem  and  confidence  of  our  friends,  the  Allies. 
For  this  we  must  have  millions  of  copies  of  newspapers. 
And  in  order  to  get  them  we  need  a  printing  office 
with  rotary  presses,  capable  of  running  off  a  consider- 
able number  of  copies  every  day.  We  have  none  such 
in  Russia,  except  those  in  the  hands  of  the  capitalists, 
who  will  not  part  with  them.  We  are  receiving  no 
more  since  the  breaking  out  of  the  war,  since  it  has 
become  impracticable  to  import  things. 

"In  our  country  rotary  presses  are  not  manufac- 
tured. So  we  poor  Socialists  remain  with  empty  hands, 
limited  to  working  with  small  machines,  which  give 
us  miserable  thousands  of  copies,  instead  of  the  mil- 
lions that  are  indispensable.  That  is  why  I  address 
myself  to  you,  my  friends.  Get  up  a  subscription  to 
raise  a  sum  of  money  which  will  serve  first  to  buy  a 
rotary  printing  press,  and  paper  enough  to  furnish 
reading  matter  for  several  months,  until  the  meeting 


of  the  General  Assembly;  the  second  part  of  the 
money  as  the  capital  necessary  to  begin  the  great  affair 
of  publishing  the  paper. 

"Make  the  American  public  understand  that  this 
is  not  only  a  question  of  the  salvation  of  the  Russian 
people,  but  a  question  which  concerns  international 
relations  and  interests.  The  whole  world  would  be  a 
gainer  by  having  as  a  member  a  country  with  ideas 
nobly  and  wisely  directed  toward  the  common  good. 
This  is  in  no  sense  a  Utopia,  for,  as  I  have  told  you  all 
along  in  our  correspondence,  'The  Russians  are  a 
capable  people,  and  of  a  good  disposition.  All  they 
need  is  civilization  and  education.* 

"To  be  sure,  after  some  years,  and  by  great  efforts, 
we  should  be  able  to  accomplish  it  by  our  own  strength, 
for  in  spite  of  the  troubles  and  disorders  that  are  mani- 
festing themselves  at  present,  common  sense  and  good 
faith  will  get  the  upper  hand.  But  it  would  be  a  great 
pity  not  to  do  the  utmost  possible  to  hasten  the  glad 
time  of  an  order  which  would  permit  working  with  full 
power  and  speedy  success,  instead  of  letting  the  time 
drag  along,  at  the  risk  of  delaying  the  general  well-being. 

"Think  of  it,  friends,  and  let  me  know  your  decision 
as  soon  as  it  is  reached,  whether  favorable  or  unfavor- 
able. I  wish  very  much  that  it  may  be  favorable. 
I  urge  you  to  decide  as  soon  as  possible,  too,  because 
my  health  is  not  as  strong  as  it  used  to  be.  I  should 
like  much  to  see  with  my  own  eyes  the  installation  of 
the  whole  affair.  My  experience  has  been  great,  and 
I  have  never  had  at  my  side  persons  unworthy  of 
confidence.  Now  that  all  activities  are  carried  on 
openly,  I  have  every  opportunity  to  make  a  good 
choice  while  I  am  alive  to  do  it. 


LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION    329 

"So,  in  case  you  consent,  I  beg  you  to  address  the 
things  (the  machine,  its  equipment  and  the  paper) 
as  well  as  the  money,  to  the  address : 

"  'Russia,  Moscow,  Kusnezky  Most  16., 
"  '  For  Catherine  Breshkovsky.' ' 

An  Associated  Press  dispatch  of  September  21,  1917, 
speaks  of  her  as  lodged  in  the  winter  palace  in  Petro- 
grad,  and  as  finding  the  surroundings  too  gorgeous  for 
her  simple  tastes.  She  reported  that  she  and  her 
friends  had  140  printing  presses1  busy  turning  out 
literature  for  the  peasants  and  workmen,  and  for  the 
soldiers  at  the  front. 

Madame  Breshkovsky  was  chosen  a  member  of  the 
Preliminary  Parliament  of  Russia.  When  it  assembled 
in  Petrograd  on  October  20,  1917,  Premier  Kerensky, 
after  his  opening  speech,  called  upon  her  to  take 
the  chair,  as  she  was  the  senior  member  of  the  Parlia- 
ment. She  received  a  great  ovation  as  temporary 
chairman. 

As  reported  in  the  press  despatches,  she  declared 
that  the  people  ought  to  be  masters  of  the  soil  they 
cultivate.  A  just  solution  of  the  agrarian  question, 
she  said,  would  enable  the  country  to  avoid  dangerous 
collisions;  therefore,  if  the  council  of  the  republic 
seriously  wished  to  assist  the  country,  it  should  solve 
this  problem  in  conformity  with  the  exigencies  of 
Russian  history,  and  she  urged  the  intellectual  classes 
not  to  oppose  such  a  solution. 

Madame  Breshkovsky's  whole  life  has  fulfilled  the 
words  that  she  once  wrote  to  an  American  friend : 

"We  ought  to  elevate  the  people's  psychology  by 
*  See  Appendix, 


330    LITTLE  GRANDMOTHER  OF  RUSSIAN  REVOLUTION 

our  own  example,  and  give  them  the  idea  of  a  purer 
life  by  making  them  acquainted  with  better  morals 
and  higher  ideals;  to  call  out  their  best  feelings  and 
strongest  principles.  We  ought  to  tell  the  truth,  not 
fearing  to  displease  OUT  hearers ;  and  be  always  ready 
to  confirm  our  words  by  our  deeds." 


APPENDIX 

DR.  GREGORY  GERSHUNI  (PAGE  107) 

GERSHUNI  was  Madame  Breshkovsky's  closest  col- 
league in  the  work  of  the  party.  He  was  a  Jew,  and  a 
man  of  extraordinary  force  of  character.  His  escape 
from  Siberia  was  remarkable.  At  the  prison  of  Akatui, 
the  prisoners  used  to  put  up  their  own  provisions  for 
the  winter.  These  were  then  stored  in  the  cellars  of  the 
Governor's  house,  which  stood  outside  the  walls.  Ger- 
shuni's  fellow  exiles  put  him  in  the  bottom  of  a  large 
barrel,  which  had  been  furnished  with  breathing  holes. 
They  spread  a  piece  of  leather  over  him,  filled  the  top 
of  the  barrel  with  pickled  cabbage,  and  conveyed  it  to 
the  Governor's  lowest  cellar,  where  they  left  it.  Com- 
rades outside  had  dug  a  subterranean  tunnel  into  the 
cellar,  and  Gershuni  got  out  of  the  barrel  and  went 
away. 

To  keep  his  escape  from  being  found  out  too  soon, 
the  other  exiles  made  a  head  out  of  cheese,  and  laid  it 
on  the  pillow  in  his  cell.  When  the  jailer  made  the 
rounds  in  the  evening  to  see  that  the  prisoners  were 
all  there,  several  of  them  stood  around  Gershuni 's  bed, 
apparently  holding  an  animated  conversation  with  this 
head. 

Gershuni  afterwards  visited  America.  The  great 

331 


332  APPENDIX 

reception  given  him  on  his  arrival  at  the  South  Station 
by  the  Russians  and  Russian  Jews  of  Boston  was  a 
wonderful  sight.  So  was  his  funeral  in  Paris  a  few 
years  later.  He  was  as  remarkable  a  character  as 
Madame  Breshkovsky  herself. 

The  first  number  of  Free  Russia  was  published  as 
a  monthly  in  August,  1890,  as  the  organ  of  the  Eng- 
lish Society  of  Friends  of  Russian  Freedom,  with 
"New  York  and  London"  in  the  date  line.  The  No- 
vember number  of  the  same  year  appeared  as  an 
"American  Edition",  with  the  announcement  that 
the  Russian  American  National  League  of  New  York 
had  united  with  the  Society  of  Friends  of  Russian 
Freedom  of  England,  and  had  organized  the  Free 
Russia  Publishing  Association  "for  the  purpose  of 
publishing  this  magazine  in  America."  Thencefor- 
ward there  was  a  special  American  edition  of  Free 
Russia  issued  every  month  in  New  York.  The  edit- 
ing of  it  for  American  readers  began  with  the  number 
for  July,  1891.  This  American  edition  ceased  publica- 
tion with  the  number  for  June-July,  1894. 

AMERICAN  FRIENDS  OF  RUSSIAN  FREEDOM  (PAGE  124) 

The  call  sent  out  in  May  of  1891  setting  forth  the 
objects  of  the  association,  and  inviting  membership, 
was  headed  by  Colonel  Thomas  Wentworth  Higginson, 
and  signed  by  Julia  Ward  Howe,  John  G.  Whittier, 
James  Russell  Lowell,  George  Kennan,  William  Lloyd 
Garrison,  Henry  I.  Bowditch,  Alice  Freeman  Palmer, 
Charles  G.  Ames,  Edward  L.  Pierce,  Phillips  Brooks, 
Frank  B.  Sanborn,  Annie  Fields,  Albert  G.  Browne, 
Edward  Everett  Hale,  Minot  J.  Savage,  R.  Heber 
Newton,  C.  H.  Eaton,  Raymond  S.  Perrin,  Mary 


APPENDIX  333 

Putnam  Jacobi,  Titus  Munson  Coan,  Marguerite 
Merington,  E.  Winchester  Donald,  Lyman  Abbott, 
Hamilton  W.  Mabie,  E.  Benjamin  Andrews,  Lillie 
B.  Chace  Wyman,  Samuel  L.  Clemens,  Joseph  H. 
Twichell,  F.  D.  Huntington,  William  C.  Gannett, 
John  W.  Chadwick,  John  H.  Vincent,  W.  H.  Furness, 
W.  N.  McVickar,  and  Joseph  T.  Duryea. 

POEMS  ON  MADAME  BRESHKOVSKY  (PAGE  173) 

The  following  are  three  of  the  many  poems   that 
have  been  written  to  Catherine  Breshkovsky : 

BRESHKOVSKAYA 

BY  ELSA  BARKER 
(From  the  New  York  Times) 

How  narrow  seems  the  round  of  ladies'  lives 

And  ladies'  duties  in  their  smiling  world, 

The  day  this  Titan  woman,  gray  with  years, 

Goes  out  across  the  void  to  prove  her  soul ! 

Brief  are  the  pains  of  motherhood,  that  end 

In  motherhood's  long  joy ;  but  she  has  borne 

The  age-long  travail  of  a  cause  that  lies 

Still-born  at  last  on  History's  cold  lap. 

And  yet  she  rests  not ;  yet  she  will  not  drink 

The  cup  of  peace  held  to  her  parching  lips 

By  smug  Dishonor's  hand.     Nay,  forth  she  fares, 

Old  and  alone,  on  exile's  rocky  road  — 

That  well-worn  road  with  snows  incarnadined 

By  blood  drops  from  her  feet  long  years  agone. 

Mother  of  power,  my  soul  goes  out  to  you 
As  a  strong  swimmer  goes  to  meet  the  sea 


334  APPENDIX 

Upon  whose  vastness  he  is  like  a  leaf. 
What  are  the  ends  and  purposes  of  song, 
Save  as  a  bugle  at  the  lips  of  life 
To  sound  reveille  to  a  drowsing  world 
When  some  great  deed  is  rising  like  the  sun  ? 

Where  are  those  others  whom  your  deed  inspired 
To  deeds  and  words  that  were  themselves  a  deed  ? 
Those  who  believed  in  death  have  gone  with  death 
To  the  gray  crags  of  immortality ; 
Those  who  believed  in  life  have  gone  with  life 
To  the  red  halls  of  spiritual  death. 

And  you  ?     But  what  is  death  or  life  to  you  ? 

Only  a  weapon  in  the  hand  of  faith 

To  cleave  a  way  for  beings  yet  unborn 

To  a  far  freedom  you  will  never  share ! 

Freedom  of  body  is  an  empty  shell 

Wherein  men  crawl  whose  souls  are  held  with  gyves ; 

For  Freedom  is  a  spirit,  and  she  dwells 

As  often  in  a  jail  as  on  the  hills. 

In  all  the  world  this  day  there  is  no  soul 

Freer  than  you,  Breshkovskaya,  as  you  stand 

Facing  the  future  in  your  narrow  cell. 

For  you  are  free  of  self  and  free  of  fear, 

Those  twin-born  shades  that  lie  in  wait  for  man 

When  he  steps  out  upon  the  wind-blown  road 

That  leads  to  human  greatness  and  to  pain. 

Take  in  your  hand  once  more  the  pilgrim's  staff  — 
Your  delicate  hand  misshapen  from  the  nights 
In  Kara's  mines ;  bind  on  your  unbent  back, 
That  long  has  borne  the  burdens  of  the  race, 


APPENDIX  335 

The  exile's  bundle,  and  upon  your  feet 
Strap  the  worn  sandals  of  a  tireless  faith. 

You  are  too  great  for  pity.     After  you 

We  send  not  sobs,  but  songs ;  and  all  our  days 

We  shall  walk  bravelier  knowing  where  you  are. 


TO  CATHERINE  BRESHKOVSKY 

IN  THE  FORTRESS  OF  PETER  AND  PAUL 

BY  SOPHIE  JEWETT 
(Reprinted  by  permission  of  Thomas  Y.  Crowell.) 

The  liberal  summer  wind  and  sky  and  sea, 
For  thy  sake,  narrow  like  a  prison  cell 
About  the  wistful  hearts  that  love  thee  well 
And  have  no  power  to  comfort  nor  set  free. 

They  dare  not  ask  what  these  hours  mean  to  thee : 
Delays  and  silences  intolerable  ? 
The  joy  that  seemed  so  near,  that  soared,  and  fell, 
Become  a  patient,  tragic  memory  ? 

From  prison,  exile,  age,  thy  gray  eyes  won 
Their  gladness,  Mother,  as  of  youth  and  sun, 
And  love ;  and  though  thy  hero  heart,  at  length 

Tortured  past  thought,  break  for  thy  children's  tears, 
Thy  mortal  weariness  shall  be  their  strength, 
Thy  martyred  hope  their  vision  through  far  years. 


336  APPENDIX 

BABUSHKA 

BY  KATHARINE  LEE  BATES 

Thou  whose  sunny  heart  outglows 
Arctic  snows ; 

Russia's  hearth-fire,  cherishing 
Courage  almost  perishing ; 
Torch  that  beacons  oversea 
Till  a  world  is  at  thy  knee ; 
Babushka  the  Beloved, 
What  Czar  can  exile  thee  ? 

Sweet,  serene,  unswerving  soul, 
To  thy  goal 

Pressing  on  such  mighty  pinions 
Tyrants  quake  for  their  dominions, 
And  devise  yet  heavier  key, 
Deeper  cell  to  prison  thee, 
Babushka  the  Beloved, 
Thyself  art  Liberty ! 

Though  thy  martyr  body,  old, 
Chains  may  hold, 
Clearer  still  thy  voice  goes  ringing 
Over  steppe  and  mountain,  bringing, 
Holy  mother  of  the  free, 
Millions  more  thy  sons  to  be. 
Babushka  the  Beloved, 
What  death  can  silence  thee  ? 


APPENDIX  337 

DATES  OF  LETTERS  (PAGE  277) 

Before  her  attempt  at  escape.  Mme.  Breshkovsky 
had  written  several  letters  to  her  friends,  dating  them 
in  advance,  and  these  were  sent  out  to  the  post,  day 
by  day. 

PRINTING  PRESSES  (PAGE  329) 

These  were  probably  the  small  presses  that  she  had 
found  so  unsatisfactory.  Her  American  friends  had 
not  been  able  to  send  a  rotary  press. 


INDEX 


ADDAMS,  JANE,  123, 158, 184, 185, 
209,  232,  269,  324 

Aim  of  life,  255,  270,  279 

Alcohol,  suppression  of,  285 

Alexander  II,  33 

Alexandrovsk,  145 

Allies,  desires  victory  of,  288 ; 
need  of  supporting  the,  326, 
327 

America,  visits,  110-131;  com- 
ment on  leaving,  130 ;  dreams 
of,  1 1 ;  gratitude  to,  174, 
206,  211,  220,  256,  267 

American,  Catherine  Bresh- 
kovsky's,  99-100 

American  Friends  of  Russian 
Freedom,  first  society  of,  124  ; 
second  and  third,  125 

American  magazines,  romances 
in,  258 

Americans  and  Russians  com- 
pared, 243-244 

American  women,  157,  209,  250, 
256,  284 

Amnesty,  310 

Andreeff,  276 

Angora  River,  294 

Apple  Mountains,  94 

Armenians,  fate  of,  118 

Arrest  of  Mme.  Breshkovsky,  79, 
133 

Art,  reflections  on  beauty  in, 
137,  140,  141;  Russian  view 
of,  258 


Asia,  Central,  193 
Assassination,  political,  108,  109 
Atchinsk,  309 
Atlantic  Monthly,  190 
Austria,  29 
Australia,  182 
Axelrod,  32 

Azeff,  Madame  Breshkovsky  be- 
trayed by,  133 

BABRINSKI,  COUNT,  48,  49 
"Babushka,"  by  Katharine  Lee 

Bates,  336 

Baikal,  Lake,  89,  295 
Bakunin,  Michael,  27,  28 
Bakuninites,  27,  32 
Balagansk,  287  t 
Balkans,  war  in  the,  239 
Ballad  of  the  Brave  Man,  195 
Baratov,  Duke,  13,  14 
Barguzin,  89-92 ;  flight  from,  93 
Barker,  Elsa,  poem  by,  333 
Barrows,  Hon.  Samuel  J.,   125, 
127,  128,  129,  134,  224;    "A 
Sunny   Life"    (biography   of), 
261 

Barrows,  Mrs.  Isabel  C.,  125, 
127,  128,  130,  134,  135,  142, 
143,  151,  164,  172,  185,  187, 
188,  190,  212,  223,  242,  260, 
265,  266,  271,  274,  275  ;  letters 
to,  166, 170,  187, 192,  208,  214, 
224,  229,  234,  247,  261;  "A 
Sunny  Life,"  by,  261 


339 


340 


INDEX 


Bates,  Governor  John  L.,  119 
Bates,  Katharine  Lee,  poem  by, 

336 

Bey,  Cornelia  de,  269 
Biography,  how  to  write,  196 
Biography  of  Lucy  Stone  urged, 

195,  230 
Black  Hole,  82 
Black  People,  Soul  of,  158 
Blackwell,  Alice  Stone,  124,  125, 
128,  131,  144,  157,  161,  173, 
188,  229,  237 ;   letters  to,  149, 
152,  155,  161,  166,  168,  171, 
178,  182,  183,  187,  195,  209, 
214,  219,  221,  230,  241,  248, 
255,  257,  258,  260,  262,  265, 

275,  278,  280,  284,  285,  288, 
290,  292,  294,  299,  303,  318 
(cablegram),  321,  322,  324 

Blackwell,  Dr.  Elizabeth,  "Pio- 
neer Work  for  Women,"  285 

Blackwell,  Henry  B.,  Ill 

Bloomfield,  Meyer,  118 

Boarding  school,  teaches,  21 

Borash,  Michael,  155 

Boston,  111,  120 

Boston  Transcript,  120,  130 

Bouyan,  Isle  of,  280 

Breshkovskaya,  by  Elsa  Barker, 
333 

Breshkovsky,  Catherine,  activ- 
ities after  the  revolution,  318- 
329;  activities  as  a  Liberal, 
21-24;  activities  as  a  Revo- 
lutionist, 26-79,  104-132;  ar- 
rest, first,  79;  arrest,  sec- 
ond, 132;  attempted  escape 
from  Barguzin,  93,  94;  at- 
tempted escape  from  Kirensk, 

276,  277;    betrayed  by  Azeff, 
133 ;  birth  of,  1 ;  birth  of  son, 
37;       childhood      of,      8-16; 
elected  to  National  Peasants' 


Congress,  822;  escapes,  hair- 
breadth, 104-106;  Geneva, 
attends  Conference  in,  110; 
girlhood  of,  16-21 ;  imprison- 
ment in  Irkutsk,  278-289; 
imprisonment  in  Petrograd, 
first,  83-85;  Irkutsk,  letters 
from,  292-298 ;  Irkutsk  prison, 
letters  from,  278-289;  joins 
Socialist  Revolutionary  Party, 
107;  journey  to  Siberia,  first, 
86-88;  journey  to  Siberia, 
second,  144-147;  journey  to 
Yakutsk,  289 ;  Kirensk,  letters 
from,  148-275  ;  letters  to  son, 
135-143;  life  in  Siberia,  first 
term,  88-102;  life  in  Siberia, 
second  term,  145-309;  mar- 
riage of,  21 ;  Minussinsk,  let- 
ters from,  298-308 ;  parentage 
of,  1-3 ;  parting  with  son,  38, 
39;  placed  under  police  sur- 
veillance, 25 ;  Preliminary 
Parliament,  presides  at  opening 
of,  329 ;  renewal  of  revolu- 
tionary work,  104-106 ;  return 
to  Irkutsk,  292;  return  to 
Russia  after  revolution,  309- 
310;  return  to  Russia  from 
America,  180-132;  return  to 
Russia  from  Siberia,  first,  102 ; 
Russia's  condition  and  needs 
after  revolution,  318-329 ;  son, 
letters  to,  written  in  Fortress 
of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul,  135- 
143;  speech  by,  112-118; 
transferred  to  Minussinsk, 
298;  travels  in  Europe,  109; 
trial  and  sentence,  first,  85; 
trial  and  sentence,  second, 
143-144;  visit  to  America, 
111-131;  Yakutsk,  letters 
from,  290,  291 ;  welcome  in 


INDEX 


341 


Moscow,  310;  welcome  in 
Petrograd,  311-317 

Breshkovsky,  Nicholas,  appeals 
for  bail,  135  ;  birth  of,  37 ;  edu- 
cation of,  103 ;  letters  to,  135- 
143 ;  parting  with,  38,  39 

Brockway,  Zebulon  R.,  "Fifty 
Years  of  Prison  Service,"  242- 
244 

Brother  George,  see  LAZABEFF 

Bulgarians,  297 

Bullard,  Arthur,  123,  128,  163, 
172,  253,  258,  265,  283 ;  "Com- 
rade Yetta,"  by,  247,  262; 
letters  to,  165,  176,  233,  255, 
304,  324;  "A  Man's  World," 
by,  241,  246,  247,  262;  pen 
name,  Albert  Edwards,  258 

Bulun,  199,  290 

Bund,  the  Jewish,  107 

Byelozerye,  village  of,  44 

CAHAN,  DR.  ABRAHAM,  v,  111, 
112,  120 

Calendar  of  Friendship,  218 

Calf,  Katya's,  9,  10 

California,  cards  from,  182; 
dreams  of,  11;  suffrage  cam- 
paign in,  209 

Canada,  182 

Cataract  on  eyes,  287,  293 

Catt,  Mrs.  Carrie  Chapman,  302 

Caucasus,  108,  193 

Chamikon,  15 

Chicago,  111,  120,  158,  206; 
Commons,  the,  121 

Childhood,  3,  4,  5,  9,  11 

Child  question,  the,  307,  308 

Children,  country  life  for,  209, 
210 ;  Mme.  Breshkovsky 
among,  121 ;  education  of,  209, 
231,  297,  298;  question  of, 
302,  305,  307 ;  view  of,  184 


Chillon,  Castle  of,  138 

Chilmark,  Mass.,  266 

China,  98,  192,  249,  298 

Chinese  Revolution,  219 

Christmas  festivals,  160 

Commons,  Chicago,  121 

Communal  groups,  49 

Commune,  the,  31,  34,  35,  38,  41 

"  Comrade  Yetta,"  247,  262 

Cooper  Union  meeting,  120 

Cooperative,  associations,  20 ; 
bank,  21 ;  colonies,  59 ;  work- 
shops, 20,  26 

Coryell,  John,  130 

Cossacks,  ancient,  234 

Council  of  Soldiers'  and  Work- 
men's Delegates,  313 

Council  of  the  Empire,  133 

Crimean  War,  15,  45 

Crosby,  Ernest,  130 

Culture  and  Socialism,  248 

Czar,  reverence  for,  48,  51,  52, 
57,60 

Czechs,  297 

DARGAN,  MRS.  OLIVE  TILFORD, 

260 

Davis,  Miss  Katherine  B.,  285 
Davis,  Philip,  111 
Denison  House,  123,  209 
"De  Profundis,"  by  Oscar  Wilde, 

282 
Dickens,     Charles,     136;      "A 

Child's  History  of  England," 

281 

Diderot,  16 
Diogenes,  254 
Dirt,  hatred  of,  141,  194 
Disorders  following  Revolution, 

324 

Dissenters,  61,  147 
Dnieper  River,  42,  61 
Dole,  Rev.  Charles  F.,  187 


342 


INDEX 


Dostoievsky,  240 

Douma,  133,  290 

Drury,  Miss  Julia  C.,  171,  306; 
letter  to,  307 

Dudley,  Miss  Helena  S.,  123, 
153,  157,  161,  172,  185,  187, 
210,  220,  229,  242,  267;  let- 
ters to,  149,  163,  167,  174,  182, 
185,  211,  218,  227,  236,  238, 
250,  262,  283,  288,  297,  298, 
301,  306,  318,  321,  324 

Durland,  Kellogg,  120,  123,  130, 
132,  214,  215 

EAST  SIBERIA,  207 
Eastern  question,  239 
Education,  of  children,  209,  231, 

297,  298;    plan  for  universal. 

310,  320 

Educators,  women  as,  285 
Edwards,  Albert.    See  BULLARD, 

ARTHUR 

"Eleventh  Hour,  The,"  214 
Ely,  Mrs.  R.  E.,  220 
Ely,   Professor  Robert  Erskine, 

120,   123,   131,    152,  220,  224 
Emancipation  of  the  serfs,  17 
England,  193 

England's  statesmanship,  302 
English,  language,  98,  111,  121, 

122,   126,  128,   143,   160,   184, 

187,  188,  240,  265,  278,  280; 

literature,  189,  190,  207;    pu- 
pils in,  225 
Eniseisk,  298 
Equal  rights  for  women,  granted 

in    Russia,    322;     league    to 

promote,  319 
Eristoff,  Prince,  278 
Escape  attempted  from  Barguzin, 

93 ;  from  Kirensk,  276 
Escapes,    hairbreadth,    104-105, 

106 


Eugenics,  264,  304 

Evangelists,  61-75 

Evening  Post,  207 

Exiles,  classes  of,  213 ;  condition 
of,  155,  159,  162,  165,  186,  191, 
245,  257,  258,  291,  293 

FANEUIL  HALL,  BOSTON,  meet- 
ing in,  111-119 

Farewell  to  family,  30,  31 

"Fifty  Years  of  Prison  Service," 
by  Brockway,  242-244 

Fighting  League,  The,  108,  109 

Figner,  Vera,  316,  317 

Finland,  women  of,  257 

Finns,  fate  of  the,  118,  139 

Flame-seekers,  34 

Flogging,  of  dissenters,  62;  of 
peasants,  6,  16,  18,  19,  50,  52, 
55,  68,  77;  Mme.  Bresh- 
kovsky  sentenced  to,  94 

Flora,  Siberian,  232 

Florida,  183 

Forecast,  power  of,  303 

Fortress  of  St.  Peter  and  St. 
Paul,  74,  134,  135,  139,  140, 
150,  175,  239,  316 

Forward,  Jewish  Daily,  v,  120 

Foulke,  Hon.  William  Dudley, 
111,  118,  125 

France,  193 

Free  Russia,  124,  332 

French,  and  Spaniards  compared, 
137;  language,  3,  4,  16,  98, 
112, 128, 129,  240,  278;  people, 
137,  138;  pupils  in,  225; 
Revolution,  16 

Friedman,  I.  K.,  120 

Friends  of  Russian  Freedom, 
111 

GALTTZIN,  DUCHESS,  15,  16 
Garrison,  Francis  J.,  124 


INDEX 


343 


Geneva,     conference     in,     110 ; 

Lake  of,  137,  138 
George,  Brother.     See  LAZAREFF 
German,     characteristics,     300 ; 
civilization,    300 ;     governess, 
4,   16,  300;    hymns,  67;  lan- 
guage, 16,  98 ;   people,  destruc- 
tion not  desired,  300 ;    Protes- 
tants, 67 ;  pupils  in,  225 
Germans,  indignation  against,  288 
Germany,  ideas  from,  321 ;    in- 
solence of,  282 ;   urges  help  to 
vanquish,  322 ;  war  with,  304 
Gershuni,  Dr.  Gregory,  107,  331 
Golden  mean  inculcated,  2,  3 
Goldenberg,  L.,  124 
Goldman,  Emma,  122,  123 
Goremykina,  Olga  Ivanovna,  1,  2 
Gorow,  Boris,  124 
Governess,  works  as,  21 
Greek    Church,    2,    62-64,    67; 

monks  of  the,  36,  62 
Guards'  Economic  Society,  316 

HEALTH,  CARE  OF,  139,  161,  176, 

212,  228,  230,  247,  248,  258 
Helsingfors,   picture   gallery   of, 

139 

Henry,  Alice,  207 
Henry  Street  Settlement,  123 
Heroism,  319 
Herreshoff,  Lewis,  171,  183,  231, 

239,  291 ;   letters  to,  252,  300, 

306 

Higher  education  of  women,  19 
Honolulu,  182 
Horrors,  cannot  read,  136 
Howe,    Mrs.    Julia    Ward,    111, 

123,  124,  214,  228 
Hull  House,  123,  158,  282 
Hungary,  travels  through,  109 
Hunger  strike,  97,  98 
Hymns,  Book  of,  280 


IMAGINATION,    POWER   OF,    150, 

219,  240,  270 

Independent,  The,  188,  190 
International  Congresses,  299 
Irkutsk,  101,  252,  287,  289,  290, 

308 ;   ill  with  scurvy  in,  145 ; 

prison     expecting     her,     147 ; 

women  convicts  in,   187;  life 

in,  277-279,  292,  295 
Italian  language,  240 
"Ivanhoe,"  136 

JAEGER  CLOTHING,  192,  195,  208, 

215 

Japan,  182,  238;  war  with,  115 
Jewett,  Sophie,  173;    poem  by, 

335 

Jewish  Bund,  107 
Jewish  Daily  Forward,  v,  120 
Jews,  10,  118;   no  passports  for, 

245 

KACHUG,  145,  147,  188 
Kalyenkina,  Maria,  28,  31,  41, 

43,  45,  57,  59 
Kara,  mines  of,  89-91,  94-100, 

102,  220 
Karakozoff ,  20 
Karanzin's  "History  of  Russia," 

16 

Katz,  120,  130 
Kazan     Square     demonstration, 

85 
Kennan,  George,  86,  87,  98-100, 

125,  163,  164,  219,  238;  letters 

to,  154,  155 
Kennan,  Mrs.,  172 
Kerensky,  A.  F.,  311-313,  316, 

322,  329 

Kerensky 's  first  Cabinet,  110 
Kherson,  61 
Kiev,  20,  22,  26-33,  37,  38,  59, 

82,  83,  105 


544 


INDEX 


Kirensk,  125,  143,  144,  147,  148, 
150,  159,  162,  163,  165,  172, 
175,  188,  198,  199,  203,  213, 
236,  278,  286-289 

Kirghis,  192 

Kishineff  massacre,  109 

Kominer,  Dr.,  35 

Kovalik,  14,  22,  24,  34,  37 

Kovalik  family,  14 

Kovno,  30 

Krasnoyarsk,  88 

Kropotkin,  Peter,  19,  20,  29 

Kyrenga  River,  150,  163,  174, 
198 

LA  FOLLETTE,  SENATOR,  214 
Land  question,  17,  26,  48,  60,  77, 

116,  117,  323,  329 
Lavrists,  27,  32 
Lavrov,  Peter,  27,  28,  32,  33 
Lawrence,  Mrs.  Pethick,  238 
Lawrence,  Mass.,  228,  242 
Lazareff,  George,  280,  282,  293; 

letters   to,    148,   279;    letters 

from,  202,  213,  236,  260,  276, 

285,  290 
League  to  Promote  Equal  Rights 

for  Women,  319 
Lena  River,  143,  150,  162,  163, 

174,    188,    198,   270,   278-280, 

292,    295,    312;     gold    mines, 

strike  at,  236 ;  voyage  up  the, 

292 
Lessing,  essay  on  Laocottn,  140, 

141 

Leventhal,  35 
Lewissohn,  Miss  Alice,  260 
Liberals,  era  of,  17;    in  Petro- 

grad,  19 

Library  in  Kirensk,  200 
"Life    and    Labor,"    184,    207, 

234 
Lincoln's  statue,  187 


Literature  needed  in  Russia,  327, 

329 

London,  110;  Daily  News,  143 
Lopatin,  Herman,  316,  317 
"Lords  and  Lovers,"  by  O.  T. 

Dargan,  260 
Lugovetz,  15,  30 

McAFEE,  EFFIE  DANFORTH,  let- 
ter to,  256 

Mackintosh,  Lady,  175 

"Man's  World,  A,"  241,  246, 
247,  262 

Manuscript,  Mme.  Breshkov- 
sky's,  151,  175 

Manzurka,  interview  at,  145 

Maria  Kalyenkina.  See  KALY- 
ENKINA 

Marriage,  21 

Marriages,  nominal,  36 

Melnikov,  107 

"Memoirs  of  a  Revolutionist," 
Kropotkin,  20 

Mental  occupation  as  health 
preservative,  103 

Militancy,  suffrage,  239 

Minussinsk,  298,  318 

Moghilev,  31 

Montana,  victory  of  woman  suf- 
frage in,  284 

"Moral  Citadel,  A,"  224 

Moscow,  20,  318,  319;  Douma, 
310;  welcome  in,  310 

"Moses  and  his  Four  Brothers," 
53 

Mukhtuiska  district,  198 

Mussey,  June  Barrows,  171,  185, 
223,  266 ;  letters  to,  166,  226, 
234,  235,  261,  273 

Mussey,  Professor  Henry  R., 
151,  266 

Mussey,  Mrs.  Mabel  H.  Bar- 
rows, 128,  215,  280 


INDEX 


345 


National  Geographic  Magazine, 
184,  207 

Nazarov,  A.  A.,  316 

Nechayev,  26 

Nekrasof,  20,  28 

Neva,  The,  308 

Nevada,  victory  of  woman  suf- 
frage in,  284 

"New  Freedom,  The,"  by  Wood- 
row  Wilson,  266,  268 

New  York  branch  of  Friends  of 
Russian  Freedom,  120 

New  York  Call,  299 

New  York  City,  impressions  of, 
126 

New  York  Prison  Association, 
125 

New  York  settlement,  153 

New  York  Times,  173;  poem 
from,  333 

Nicholas,  Czar,  15 

Noble,  Edmund,  124 

Nurses'  Settlement,  123 

ODESSA,  32,  34,  109 ;  University 

of,  33 
"Order    of    Peace    and    Good 

Will,"  C.  F.  Dole,  187 
Original  pages  of  Czar's  book  of 

laws,  51,  55,  56 
Orlov,  42,  44,  50,  59 
Outlook,  The,  v,  134,  184,  238 
Overwork,    warns   against,    176, 

212,  228,  230,  258,  259 

"PANAMA,"    BY    ARTHUB    BUL- 

LARD,  233 

Pankhurst,  Christabel,  238 
Parentage,  Mme.  Breshkovsky's, 

1,  2,3 

Parents,  183,  184 
Paris,    5,    110;     why    popular, 

138 


Party,  People's,  78,  106 ;  Social- 
ist Revolutionary,  107,  109, 
110 

Party  of  Will  of  People,  106 

Passports,  41,  44,  72,  80 

Pavlovna,  Vera,  36 

Peace,  need  of,  302 

Peasant  girls,  237,  257;  woman, 
the,  297;  provinces,  Viatka 
and  Perm,  117 

Peasants',  achievements,  116; 
Agricultural  School,  21 ;  rights 
of  local  suffrage,  24 

Peasants,  107,  283;  awakened, 
117;  National  Congress  of, 
322 ;  organizing  among,  76-78, 
104;  Russian,  4,  8,  10,  11,  13, 
16,  17,  21,  24,  27,  30,  32,  35, 
55,  56,  68,  70,  254,  321,  323 

"Pelee,  Tragedy  of,"  by  George 
Kennan,  156,  163,  164 

Pen'dleton,  Ellen  Fitz,  238 

"People,  To  the,"  28,  29,  30 

People's  Party,  78,  106 

Perm,  province  of,  117 

Peter,  Brother,  69,  71,  72 

Petition,  297 ;  from  England  and 
America,  143 

Petrograd,  15,  19,  34,  37,  93,  94, 
134,  144,  145,  328 ;  prison  in, 
83-85 ;  work  in,  37,  38 

Philadelphia,  111 ;  meeting,  119, 
120 

Philadelphia  North  American,  119 

Philanthropy  not  enough,  227 

Pilate,  Jesus  before,  218 

"Pioneer  Work  for  Women,"  by 
Dr.  Elizabeth  Blackwell,  285 

Platon,  169,  208,  222 

Plehve,  von,  109 

Podolia,  78 

Poles,  118,  297 

Police  rules  for  exiles,  92,  93 


346 


INDEX 


Polish,  Mme.  Breshkovsky  one 

fourth,  1 ;  peasants,  78 
Political  assassination,  108,  109 
Politics,  American,  232,  233,  241 
Poole,  Ernest,  v ;  letters  to,  299, 

324 

Preliminary  Parliament,  329 
Printing  presses,  324,  327,  337 
"Prison  Service,  Fifty  Years  of," 

Brockway,  242-244 
Prison   superintendents,  women 

as,  285 

Provincial  town,  life  of,  141 
Provisional       Government       of 

Russia,  310 
Public,  The,  190,  305 
Pushkin,  15 

REILLT,  Miss  CAROLINE  L,  266 

Rest,  Evening,  190 

"Resurrection,"  Tolstoy's,  125 

Reunion  Legislative,  321 

Rogestwensky,  Assistant  Sur- 
geon, 198,  202 

Romances  in  American  maga- 
zines, 258 

Romaszkiewicz,  John,  111 

Roosevelt,  Theodore,  241 

Rou mania,  travels  through,  109 

Roumanian  women,  76 

Rousseau,  16 

Rule  for  exiles,  93 

Russell,  Governor  William  E., 
124 

Russia,  history  of,  304,  325 

Russian,  characteristics,  126, 168. 
174,  175,  183,  193,  211,  236- 
238,  243-245,  250-252,  254, 
266,  283-284,  297,  300-301, 
804,  328;  National  Anthem, 
123;  scenery,  193;  soldiers, 
bravery  of,  300;  types,  250- 
W2;  view  of  art,  258 


"Russia's     Message,"     William 

English  Walling,  163 
Ryan,    Miss     Agnes     E.,    249, 

264 
Ryobashapka,  Ivan,  62,  72,  73, 

74 

SAGHALIEN,  91,  92 

St.  Francis  of  Assisi,  261 

St.  Petersburg,  5,  19,  20,  71, 148, 

175,  278 

Savage,  Rev.  Minot  J.,  120 
School  for  peasants,  17 
Scott,  Sir  Walter,  136 
Scudder,  Miss,  264 
Scurvy,  96,  145 
Sebastopol,  15 
Selenginsk,    98,    100,    101,    154, 

219 
Settlements,  Mme.  Breshkovsky 

welcomed  in,  123 
"Seven   Ages   of   Washington," 

183 
"Shepherd,    The,"    by    O.     T. 

Dargan,  260 
Shevchenko,  43 
Shiria,  Madame,  12,  13 
Shishko,  110 
Shitlovsky,  Dr.,  Ill 
Siberia,  and  exile  system,  98,  99, 

154,    155;    characteristics    of, 

157,    221,    294;     East,    207; 

first   journey  to,  86,  87,  88; 

second  journey  to,   145,   146, 

147;    travels   in,   89,  90,  91, 

98,  101 
Siberian,  classes  of  exiles,  213; 

flora,  232 ;  natives,  222 
Siebker,  Sophie  A.,  262,  264 
Skobelev,  315 

Smith,  Miss  Lucy,  211,  220 
Smolin  Convent,  2 
Smycla,  life  in,  48 


INDEX 


347 


Social  Democratic  Party,  106 

Social  Democrats,  158 

Socialism,  and  Culture,  248 ; 
Russia  advancing  toward,  324 

Socialist  Revolutionary  Party, 
107,  109,  110 

"Souls  of  Black  People,"  158 

Spaniards  and  French  compared, 
137 

Speech,  Mme.  Breshkovsky's, 
112-118 

Starr,  Miss  Ellen,  123,  155,  172, 
185,  206,  264,  267 ;  letters  to, 
157,  173,  267,  279,  297,  305, 
324 

Stephanovitch,  Yakov,  41,  44, 
46,  47,  57,  61,  71,  79,  82,  83 

Stephan  the  Evangelist,  63 

Stepniak,  124 

Stolypin,  Premier,  134 

Stone,  Lucy,  189,  196,  284; 
biography  of,  195,  230 

Strikes  in  Russia,  general,  133 

Students'  lunch  room,  22 

Suffrage,  campaign  hi  California, 
209;  peasants',  24.  See  also 
WOMAN  SUFFRAGE 

Suffragist,  advice  to  marry  a, 
234 

Sugar  factories  of  Smyela,  48 

Sultan  derived  support  from 
Czar,  118 

Sumichrast,  Professor  F.  C.  de, 
111 

"Sunny  Life,  A,"  by  I.  C.  Bar- 
rows, 261 

Survey,  The,  214,  225 

Switzerland,  27,  29,  193,  262; 
revolutionists  make  pilgrim- 
ages to,  28 ;  greetings  received 
from,  113  ;  revolutionary 
presses  hi,  107 ;  revolutionists 
in,  110 


TAFT,  WILLIAM  H.,  241 

Taiga,  the,  93 

Tartars,  192 

Tashkend,  193 

Tchaldans,  222 

Tchaykovsky,  Barbara,  103,  143 

Tchaykovsky,  Dr.  Nicholas,  133, 

134,    135;    letters   from,    143, 

215  ;  letter  to,  179 
Tchaykovsky,  Mrs.,  143 
Tcherkass,  42,  43,  57,  59 
Tchernigov,  childhood  passed  in, 

3 

Tchernoff,  Victor,  110 
Tcheidze,  N.  S.,  313,  315 
Terrorism,  108,  109 
Theatrical  performances,  231 
Tiumen,  101 
Tobolsk,  101 

Tolstoy's  "Resurrection,"  125 
"To  the  People,"  28,  29 
Travels  hi  Europe,  109 
Trial,  Mme.  Breshkovsky's  first, 

85,  86;   second,  143 
Tulchin,  78 
Turco-Russian  War,  300 

UNITED  STATES,  love  for,  164, 
166 ;  progress  in,  233,  256,  299 

Universities  of  Petrograd,  Mos- 
cow, and  Dorpat,  311 

University  of  Odessa,  33 

Urals,  193,  318 

VERIGO,  CONSTANTINE  MIKHAIL- 

OVTTCH,  1,  2,  24,  25 
Verigo,  Natalie  Constantinovna, 

3,  30,  103,  135 
Verigo,  Olga  Constantinovna,  28, 

31,  38 
Verigo,  Olga  Ivanovna  Goremy- 

kina,  1,  2,  3 
Verigo,  Vera,  37 


348 


INDEX 


Verkhni  Udinsk,  terrible  scenes 

at,  91 

Vers  libre,  194,  195 
Viatka,  117 

Vienna,  passes  through,  109 
Vitebsk,  1 
Vitim,  292 
Vladimiroff,  276 
Vladivostok,  95 
Volkhovsky,  Felix,  110,  282 
Voltaire,  16 
Von  Plehve,  109 

WALD,  Miss  LILLIAN  D.,   123, 

214,  264,  318 ;   letters  to,  189, 

270 

Walling,  William  English,  153 
War,  281,  283,  285,  293,  304,  307, 

308 

Ward,  Mrs.  L.  A.  Coonley,  121 
Warsaw,  5 
Welcome,  in  Moscow,  310;    in 

Petrograd,  311 
Wellesley  College,  119,  238,  250; 

letter  to,  216 

Westover  School,  294,  297 
Wiener,  Professor  Leo,  111 


Wife-beating,  65,  66 

Wilde,  Oscar,  282 

Wilson,  Woodrow,  "The  New 
Freedom,"  266-268,  269 

Woman  suffrage,  178,  184,  219, 
232,  234,  249;  victories  in 
Nevada  and  Montana,  284 

Woman's  Journal,  The,  111,  154, 
179,  183,  225,  249 

Woman's  sphere,  179 

Women  of  Northern  countries, 
257 

Women's  battalion,  323;  char- 
acteristics, 181,  189,  297; 
duties,  181 

Worry,  disadvantages  of,  103 

YAKUTS,  162,  166,  214 
Yakutsk,  94,  187,  189,  198,  201, 

207,  288-291,  308 
Yarros,  Dr.,  158 
Yelizavetgrad,  61 
Yezersky,  Mrs.  Lydia,  291 

ZEMSTVOS,  21,115, 117 
Zhelyabov,  Andrei,  33 
Zlatopol,  76 


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